


I was created to create.

by Anniesantawifey



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Angst, Billy Hargrove Redemption, Byerove, Child Abuse, Eleven is Jane Hopper and free to walk around Hawkins, Eventual character development, Friendship, M/M, Mentions of Death, Possible Relationship, Slow Burn, Soulmates, Tags will be updated, Violence, following season two, upside down is closed for now
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-16
Updated: 2019-02-18
Packaged: 2019-03-19 14:45:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 106,999
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13706637
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anniesantawifey/pseuds/Anniesantawifey
Summary: Two abused boys share a bond they didn't ask for. Becoming close and questioning everything.——Or: Since Billy isn't getting the redemption in the show, I am giving him one.





	1. Bond

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, thank you for choosing to give this story a try!
> 
> This chapter is Billy's life before he found himself in Hawkins.

  
  
_bond;_  
  
a shared closeness with another person  
  
——  
  
_He was seven when he first heard about soulmates._  
  
Watching all the happy couples in California walking down the streets, holding hands and showing their love, that was something what seemed natural and normal for him. And so it raised some questions in the young boy when his neighbour kept on walking home alone every day.  
  
"Mommy?" He had asked his mother one day as he watched the man opposite his house walk with his head hung low. "Why is he always alone?" He added, pointing to the window and earning a puzzled look from his mother.  
  
"What do you mean, sweetheart?"  
  
"No one is alone here." He exclaimed, wondering how did his mother not notice.  
  
"Oh, darling. I assure you that is not true. Many people are alone, you are just too young to see it." She said, ruffling his hair which made the young boy frown.  
  
"But why are they alone?"  
  
The woman sat down next to him and sighed softly, taking a minute to think before she spoke. "Did any of the kids ever use the word soulmate?"  
  
He nodded quickly.  
  
"And do you know what that means?" The question was rewarded with a shake of head from the boy.  
  
"Soulmate is someone who is there for you so you are not alone. When you are older, you will meet your soulmate." She spoke slowly with a smile placed on her face.  
  
"Why don't I have a soulmate now?" He asked, frowning and crossing his hands.  
  
His mother chuckled at her son's reactions before shaking her head. "As I said, darling, you are too young now. One day, a word or a sentence will appear somewhere on your body. Maybe here, or here or even here." She spoke, pointing to his arm, leg and tummy. "That is going to be something your soulmate will say to you."  
  
"What if someone else says it?"  
  
"They won't, trust me. It's only going to be that one special person." She assured him with a smile.  
  
"When will I meet them?"  
  
"I don't know, no one knows. You will have to wait." The mother said as she stood up, returning to her previous tasks of cleaning the kitchen.  
  
The boy watched his mother, more questions coming up in his mind. "But I am not alone. You are with me. Are you my soulmate?"  
  
He was given one of her warmests smiles and a shrug. "I don't know, I might be. Soulmate can be your friend but also someone you fall in love with."  
  
"You and daddy are soulmates?"  
  
The next question made his mother pause for a bit. "I am your father's soulmate but my soulmate is someone else."  
  
"Who?" The boy asked with wide eyes, his mind getting more confused by the second.  
  
His mother just smiled. "My sister. Your aunt Jenna." She then said, looking over at the fridge at a picture of the two women before continuing. "And enough talk about soulmates, we will continue this when the words appear to you, okay?"  
  
"Okay, mom." The boy nodded.  
  
"Now come help me, Billy."  
  
——  
  
_He was nine when the words appared on his skin.  
_  
The boy was walking back to his bedroom after taking a shower, scratching his hipbone since it has been ichy for a few hours now. He frowned when the skin almost burned under his touch and he took a few steps towards the mirror placed on his closet, turning around to look if there was anything there.  
  
He removed the fingers to reveal red skin and what looked to be like letters forming within the redness.  
  
"Mom!" He called out as soon as he realized what might be happening.  
  
"Billy? Is everything okay?" The woman called out and the boy could hear footsteps approaching.  
  
When the woman came, soon followed by her husband the letters have already formed into words and now made a whole sentence.  
  
**'I was created to create.'**  
  
Billy's eyes were fixed on the black words that now marked his skin, his fingers softly roaming around them.  
  
"Oh, darling." He could hear his mother, turning his head a bit to the side he found her almost in tears with a warm smile placed on her face. His father standing behind her with softer features than usual.  
  
"I am so happy for you, sweetheart." The woman spoke as she hugged her son, looking at the words placed on his skin.  
  
"What happens now?"  
  
To Billy's surprise it was his father who answered his question, not his mother. "Now you have to wait a year until you get to ask your soulmate something."  
  
"What do you mean?" The boy asked, looking between his mother and his father.  
  
"There is a possibility your soulmate might already be in your life and there is a possibility they might not. In your mother's case, her soulmate was her sister and she didn't get to ask any questions. Following me so far?"  
  
The boy nodded in the direction of his father, waiting for him to continue.  
  
"If you do not meet your soulmate within a year, you get to ask them a question. You now share a connection, even though you don't know who they are. Just one question, each year until you find her."  
  
"Or him." His mother added, earning a raised eyebrow from the boy's father before continuing. "But you don't have to ask the question. Some people choose not to because they might have already fallen in love with someone else and they don't want to be controlled."  
  
"But that doesn't happen very often." His father's voice cut between his mother's words. "Let's just hope your soulmate is some pretty girl. After all, she now shares a bond with you." He annouced before leaving Billy's room.  
  
"Shares a bond with me?"  
  
His mother nodded, placing her hands around the boy's shoulders. "When only one word appears on your skin, it means that you are not your soulmate's soulmate. But when you get a full sentence, it means that you are each others soulmates. Sometimes, a person with only a word, finds their soulmate but they have got their own already. You can only be one person's soulmate."  
  
The mother and son stood in silence for a while, simply studying the words carved into the boy's skin.  
  
"What if it's not a pretty girl?" Billy eventually asked, looking up at his mother who just gave him a smile.  
  
"Then it's going to be a pretty boy."  
  
——  
  
_He was about to turn ten when his mother died._  
  
He will always remember this day as one of the worst in his entire life.  
  
Him and his mother walking back from the grocery store.  
  
Her being closer to the road.  
  
Her smiling down at him.  
  
Him telling her what happened in school that day.  
  
The loud sounds of tires echoing through the whole town.  
  
The drunken laugh of the driver behind the wheel.  
  
The sound the car made when the driver made a sharp turn.  
  
The driver losing control of the wheel.  
  
The groceries his mother was holding flying everywhere.  
  
His mother yelling out his name.  
  
His mother pushing him away.  
  
Him falling onto the ground.  
  
His mother flying away from him after the contact with the car.  
  
Him yelling out for his mother.  
  
His mother falling to the ground.  
  
Stranger's arms catching him before he could run to his mother.  
  
The sound of a car riding away.  
  
Stranger's voice calling for someone to call an ambulance.  
  
Him trying to get away from the stranger.  
  
His mother not moving.  
  
Him crying.  
  
——  
  
_He was ten when he first asked his soulmate a question.  
_  
"Billy! What the hell do you think you are doing?"  
  
The boy jumped at the sound of his father's voice, stepping away from the oven before turning around to face his father.  
  
"I just wanted to cook myself something, I am hungry."  
  
"And you couldn't wait until I get home or what?"  
  
Billy looked down at the floor when he recognized the anger in his father's voice. "I am sorry, I was just hungry." He said quietly.  
  
"You don't know how to cook, you could have ruined the whole kitchen!"  
  
The boy looked up and quickly shook his head. "But I didn't ruin anything, I swear!"  
  
His father stopped in his tracks as he looked all over the boy. "Are you raising your voice at me?"  
  
"N-No." Billy quickly said, shaking his head once more.  
  
"No what?"  
  
"No, sir." The boy then added, looking away from his father who stared at him.  
  
"Good." The older man said harshly. "Now go to your room, I will call you when the dinner is ready. If I decide to even make you some after your ungratefullnes."  
  
"Yes, sir." The smaller male managed to get out before almost running to his room, closing the door behind him.  
  
Ever since his mother passed away, his father's behaviour towards the boy got worse. He was never the type of a father that took his son to games and parks, he just didn't really care and left all the work to his wife. But now he was alone with the boy and he didn't seem to be handling it well. He got angry quickly and shouted at the boy, who got scared just as quickly. Later Billy would learn that he should have been glad for those times since it would only get worse year by year.  
  
He sat down on the bed, tears threating to leave his eyes at the memory of him helping his mother cook the dinner while his father was at work. "I miss you, mom." He whispered to the silent room, his eyes landing on the picture of his mother that was placed on his bedside table.  
  
He could hear his father throwing plates around in the kitchen, the loud noises suggesting his father had another bad day since Billy felt the anger all the way to his room.  
  
**'Why is my dad such a prick?'** He had asked himself, sighing deeply before yelping out loud as the words formed on his forearm.  
  
His eyes widened at the sight, staring at his arm in confusion before he realized that it has been a year since he became marked by his soulmate's words.  
  
"No, no, no, no." He didn't want this to be the first thing he asks his soulmate. He has been preparing for this moment, trying to come up with questions he is going to ask and this was definitely not one of them.  
  
The boy's eyes widened even more when he got a response, the words forming right under his question.  
  
**'My father is also a prick.'**  
  
——  
  
_He was almost eleven when his soulmate had asked him a question.  
_  
The first conversation he ever had with his soulmate faded away two days after it happened. He had spent the two days hiding his arm from his father and thinking about his soulmate.  
  
_'Who were they? Where did they live? How old were they? What was their name? Was their father really a prick? Did their mom also die? Did they have siblings? Where were they?'_  
  
He kept on living as he did before that, trying to ignore the need to speak to everyone he sees just to make sure they are not the one who are going to speak those words to him.  
  
He woke up. He dressed himself and got prepared for school. He grabbed the lunch bag that his father prepared for him every night, consisting always of a sandwich and an apple. He drove his bike to school. He went to school. He came back from school. He did his homework. He waited for his father to come home from work. He ate dinner in silence with his father. He stayed in his room until he went to sleep.  
  
But one day his routine got interrupted when he felt a strange sting on the back of his wrist, turning his hand to look at it, he frowned as soon as he saw those three words.  
  
**'How are you?'  
**  
The boy stared at his arm for a second, his heart race fastening when he realized this was his soulmate talking to him.  
  
**'Fine and you?'**  
  
He tried his best to concetrate his thoughts to only reply to his soulmate with what he really wanted and not with something stupid like last time. Even though his mind was filled with questions, wondering why was this the thing his soulmate has asked? Why did they not ask who he was? Why did they just ask the simple how are you?  
  
Billy sat on his bed, staring at his arm for what felt like hours and still no reply came. He felt sad that this was the only form of communication he got with his soulmate.  
  
He stood up and walked back to the living room, finding his father sitting on the couch doing some paper work Billy did not understand.  
  
"Dad?"  
  
His father only nodded in his direction, showing him that he is aware of his presence.  
  
"When your soulmate asks you a question and you reply to them, can they reply back?"  
  
The older man scoffed a laugh before looking at his son. "It doesn't work like that. You only get one question and one answer a year."  
  
"But that does not make any sense! How are you supposed to find your soulmate?"  
  
"Soulmates are bullshit anyway. Remember that." His father annouced, returning back to his paper work while the boy looked down onto his arm again.  
  
_'Soulmates are bullshit. Soulmates are bullshit. Soulmates are bullshit.'_  
  
——  
  
_He was eleven when he first heard the word 'faggot.'  
_  
The boy has been excited for seeing his aunt Jenna for over a week now. She reminded him a lot of his mother and he did miss his mother. Seeing aunt Jenna was the closest to feeling like seeing his mother again, something that would never happen.  
  
"Jesus, are you ready yet? You have been here for half an hour already." His father called out through the closed bathroom door, making the boy inside look into the mirror once again before he opened the door for his father.  
  
"I think so. How does it look? Do you think aunt Jenna will like it?" He said, pointing to his shirt and his styled hair.  
  
"What are you? Some faggot? Let's just go already." The older man almost growled at the young boy.  
  
Billy knew his father did not have favoritism for the boy's aunt but rather than having her call every day, asking when they are going to visit, he just stopped by with Billy every other month.  
  
The boy did looked at himself in the mirror for the last time before following his father outside, wondering what the word he was called meant.  
  
He would later ask his classmate about the word, only to find out it was something that was used for homosexual men as a way of mocking them and hurting them.  
  
He would find out after that the kids in his classrom used it with each others as they pushed each others around.  
  
He would find out even after that they used it on one boy specifically as they pushed him into the lockers, writing 'fag' on his locker.  
  
After that, he would join them just to make sure it doesn't happen to him as well. He felt as if hearing it home from his father had been enough for him already.  
  
——  
  
_He was twelve when his father first raised his hand at him.  
_  
The boy had the date written down in his calendar. He remembered the words his father had said to him 'Soulmates are bullshit'. But that didn't stop him from wanting to find out more about his soulmate.  
  
He witnessed his classmate meeting his soulmate. A girl in different class that had his words on her. Now they were spending every break together, looking happier than the others.  
  
Billy wanted that. He envieved them. He had his friends but he didn't have anyone like that.  
  
That was why he kept on checking off every day until he got to the day when he could speak to his soulmate again. He was decided that he was just going to ask a simple question. But one that could still give him some information.  
  
**'How old are you?** ' He thought, still fascinated as he watched the words form on his wrist.  
  
**'Twelve.'** Came the response and Billy's breath got caught up in his throat. His soulmate was the same age as him.  
  
The excited boy ran out from his room, trying to find his father so he could tell him the news. His mind didn't fully took in the fact his father had practically told him to let the soulmates thing go. Yet here he was, contacting his soulmate again.  
  
"Dad, look!" He said, pointing out his hand for his father to see, a smile placed on his face.  
  
The older man turned around when he heard his son's voice, his gaze immediately fell on the marked skin. The father grabbed onto the boy's wrist, raising his hand so he could properly see it.  
  
"What did I tell you?"  
  
The boy almost scolded back at the sound of his father's voice, his smile dropping instantly but he stood his ground. "I wanted to find more about my soulmate."  
  
"Life is not just about soulmates! There are more important things you should be doing, like learning how to listen!"  
  
"But now I have bigger chance to find them!"  
  
His hand was yanked as his father pushed him away from the blonde, the boy taking a step back to keep his stability.  
  
"You are not going anywhere, let it go, I am telling you this for the last time." He pointed at his son, sending him one of his angry glares.  
  
"But that is not fair! Mom was your soulmate and she told me you looked for her!" The boy replied angrily, getting frustrated by the second.  
  
That was when a hand came flying to his cheek, his head turning to the side at the contact of his father's hand and his cheek.  
  
He raised up his own hand, placing it onto the warmth that was now spreading on his face as he looked away from his father.  
  
"Go to your room."  
  
He obligated without saying a word, closing the door behind him quietly before sliding down onto the floor, holding onto the necklace his mother gave him before she passed away.  
  
The tears falling down his cheeks without him even realizing.  
  
——  
  
_He was almost thirteen when his soulmate asked him a second question.  
_  
His relationship with his father got worse and worse every day. As Billy's hormones started to fill up his body, the boy found himself talking back at his father, trying to reason with him or he just found himself not listening to him because he felt like it.  
  
His behaviour did not go unnoticed by his father who punished him each time he disobeyed him.  
  
That did not stop the young boy from behaving the way he did, it only made him angrier and wanting to fight back.  
  
It was exactly how most of the guys acted in his class. They were arguing with the teachers, pushing each others around, meeting after school to make fun of the people that walked past them.  
  
Billy soon found himself in a group of those exact boys. They liked him, he liked them. They didn't care if he didn't say anything and just angrily kicked over trash cans, they joined him. Which was exactly what Billy wanted. Someone to be there so he is not alone.  
  
He thought he might have found his purpose, being the one to start everything, to lead, for everyone else to follow him. It felt good to know that the boys are going to do exactly what he is.  
  
The boy didn't feel so alone anymore. He didn't think about his soulmate as much as he used to when his mother had passed away. Now it was more of a thought in the back of his mind.  
  
But he did know, or hoped, his soulmate was going to ask him another question and he was wondering what it might be. The first time it was just a simple 'How are you?' and that confused the blonde, making him almost worried.  
  
And so when the question finally appeared on his skin, he almost sighed in relief after reading it.  
  
**'Are you a boy or a girl?'  
**  
**'Boy.'** He replied, glad that his soulmate took a different approach this time because that meant his soulmate wanted to meet him as well.  
  
Part of him felt excited and part of him felt scared. But he let it be for now, having to wait for another few months before he could ask his soulmate anything again.  
  
——  
  
_He was thirteen when he first let his anger take over._ **  
**  
At this point in Billy's life, the boy was full of emotions he didn't let to be shown.  
  
He felt sad because he missed his mother. He felt angry at his father. He felt lonely when the boys did something without him. He felt happy when the boys praised him for something he did. He felt powerful when he pushed the younger boys into the lockers. He felt strong when others showed fear around him.  
  
He felt angry when his soulmate did not reply to his question. The question being just a simple **'Where do you live?'** , but he never got a reply. And he felt even angrier when no quesiton came from his soulmate either.  
  
His mind was at loss with everything he was feeling, the anger bubbling inside of him more and more every day.  
  
And he had enough when he kept on listening to his friend rambling about how he found his soulmate. The happines just dripping from his voice made Billy sick.  
  
That was why when the boy was going through another one of his monologues about the soulmate he had found, Billy threw his fist across his jaw, making the other boy fall down onto the ground.  
  
"Shut the hell up already!"  
  
——  
  
_He was fourteen when he found out his father is dating another woman._  
  
There was a knock on his door which made him whip his head around and frown slightly. His father never knocked, he always just entered Billy's room.  
  
The boy moved to the door, opening them with ease as he looked up at his father who looked calmer than usual. "Yes?" He said, seeing his father's face harden he was quick to continue. "Yes, sir?"  
  
"We have guests coming. I expect your best behaviour, understood?"  
  
Billy narrowed his eyes as he looked up at his father. "May I ask who is coming?"  
  
Surprisingly his father gave him a simple reply instead of telling him to shut up. "I have been seeing a woman for some time now. Her name is Susan and she is coming along with her daughter Maxine."  
  
The smaller male just gripped onto the door handle as he listened to his father. He expected his father to find someone eventually after his mother died but it didn't matter how long it has been since he didn't feel less angry after finding out.  
  
"When are they coming?" He managed to get out of himself, showing no emotion that he truly felt inside. He learnt to shut his feelings down immediately, it was for the better.  
  
"They will be here in fifteen minutes. I have already prepared dinner. Just dress nicely and act your best." His father gave him scolding look before leaving his son to change.  
  
Twenty minutes later the bell was ringing and his father was hurrying to the door while Billy sat onto the couch, slowly standing up when the door opened, reavealing a woman and a girl standing behind them.  
  
He told himself to act nicely just this once, to make his father happy because he had a feeling things would end badly if he did not obey.  
  
"Hello, I am Billy." He said with a fake smile placed on his face, reaching for the offered hand the woman gave him. "I am Susan, it's very nice to finally meet you!"  
  
He nodded in her direction before looking down at the girl standing next to her mother, looking just as uncomfortable as he felt. "Billy." He said, sliding his hands back into his pockets as he watched the girl look up at him. "Max."  
  
Max turned out to be quite silent during the dinner, just as Billy was. The adults were talking with each others and the boy felt like he was going to get a headache if he had to listen to one of Susan's stories one more time.  
  
"Do you like comics?" He blurted out of nowhere, looking at the girl sitting opposite him who just nodded. The boy then stood up, waving his hand for her to follow, looking over his shoulder at his father who gave him a nod of approval.  
  
"Thank fuck." He muttered under his breath, hearing Max chuckle behind him which meant she must have heard him.  
  
Billy opened the door to his room, letting the girl walk in before going after her, closing the door behind him. "There is a box under the bed full of comics, suit yourself." He annouced, running his hand through his hair and adjusting his necklace before sitting down onto the floor next to the girl.  
  
He grabbed one of the many comics and leaned against the bed, opening the first page as he eyed the girl next to him who was already reading the pages as quickly as she could.  
  
"Don't you have comics at home?"  
  
"Mom isn't really into comics. She let me get a skateboard and that was about it."  
  
"You can ride a skateboard?" The boy asked, his eyebrows raising in surprise. "How old even are you?"  
  
The redhead nodded before speaking up. "I am ten."  
  
"Cool." He simply said, the corners of his mouth raising up a little before he returned to his comics.  
  
He was sure the girl and her mother wouldn't stick around for long, no reason not to be nice.  
  
What surprised him was that his father and Susan kept on seeing each others.  
  
They would keep coming over more and more until one day Billy's father annouced they are moving in.  
  
They moved in, Max taking his room for a couple of nights before her room was ready. He slept on the uncomfortable couch to make his father get off his ass.  
  
Later they would get married and be a proper family as his father called it.  
  
Later his father would still snap at Billy. He would still make sure he knew where his place was.  
  
Later Billy would notice his father never even raised his voice at Max.  
  
Later Billy would see that Susan was actually a good mother, not a shitty one he had her for.  
  
Later he would see that Susan and his father were interested in Max and only her.  
  
Later he got the job of babysitting the girl.  
  
Later he found out the girl also reached her puberty and her own hormones started showing.  
  
Later he would hate all three of them, wanting nothing else than for them to leave him alone.  
  
Later he would stop showing kindness to his step-sister, spending only the time he had to with her.  
  
Later he would snap at Max when she tried to make conversation with him.  
  
Later she would stop showing him kindness as well.  
  
Later they would fall into the 'I hate you but you are family now' dynamics.  
  
——  
  
_He was fifteen when he realized girls were the best distraction._  
  
His soulmate didn't speak to him again and it left Billy in confusion, anger and a feeling of loneliness. He wondered if his soulmate had died and he ended up asking what happens when a soulmate dies Susan. He wasn't that stupid to go ask his father because he knew bringing up the memories of his mother passing away would probably lend him into a hospital.  
  
The woman actually gave him answers, telling him that the words fade away from your body when your soulmate dies. He thanked her but didn't feel any better. His words were still there and so that just meant his soulmate didn't want to do anything with him.  
  
"Fuck it." He said, deciding not to wait around like a whiny little bitch as his father would say and instead walked straight up to the girl who has been staring at him for a month now.  
  
Girls turned out to be great eventually. Loving, soft, warm. He liked how he could wrap them around his finger without even properly trying. He didn't keep any for too long and he wondered if he broke their hearts, would their friends still keep running to him? They would.  
  
He started smoking when an older girl offered him a cigarette for the first time and he noticed the girls standing next to her in awe. He prefered older girls to the girls the same age as him, they were mofe fun. A better distraction.  
  
He got his ear pierced and let his hair grow just to anger his father.  
  
The man called him a faggot again and the teenage boy gave him the middle finger. It ended with his father ripping the earring out of his ear, managing to cut it open in the process and Susan driving him to hospital after he lied and told her he did it himself.  
  
——  
  
_He was turning sixteen when he lost all control for the first time.  
_  
When he turned sixteen, he did not expect to get a car, he was genuinely surprised that his father had given him something so expensive. He figured Susan had something to do with it and he had thanked her. He didn't hate her, he actually kind of liked her. She was a good mom.  
  
She just wasn't his mom. She just didn't give him what he wanted, didn't show as much interest in him as she did in her own child.  She didn't disrespect him like his father did all the time. The woman was actually quiet most of the time, cooking or reading a book each time he saw her. He preferred her over his father or his step-sister.  
  
His father gave him the keys, not looking very pleased but his face softened a bit when he got a genuine thank you from his son.  
  
"We have one condition. This is your car but whenever we tell you or Max asks you to, you are going to drive her wherever, understood?"  
  
"Yes, sir." He replied, obeying his father because the Camaro standing next to him was too gorgeous to fight with his father. He could handle driving Max around.  
  
He soon found out that there were only two things in his life that he liked doing. Smoking cigarettes and driving his car. It brought him the calmness he needed.  
  
That was why when he and his little crew of boys came out of the cinema and saw another group of boys, leaning against his car, his anger meter flew out of the window.  
  
"What the hell do you think you are doing?" He had called out, making his way to the group of boys. He recognized them. They were from his school, the 'rival gang' as his friends called them. They had picked up fights with them before.  
  
"What, amigo? No one can touch your precious little car?" Some guy called out, sratching his nail over the car's window. Billy had to clinch his fists to stay in his place.  
  
"I am giving you one more chance to fuck off."  
  
"I don't think so, girly." Another guy said, he seemed to be the leader and Billy had enough.  
  
The anger that had built in him over the years came all lashing back as he stormed towards them, his friends right behind him.  
  
And when his fists made contact with the boy's face he felt the most powerful in his whole life.  
  
He wondered if this is what it feels like to be the one calling the shots and not the one having to obey.  
  
——  
_He was sixteen when he realized he fucked up._  
  
The encouter with the another group changed Billy. He became more reckless, impulsive, inpredictable, daring and careless. The group saw him as their leader and he liked the new found power. The new control he had.  
  
It was something that he thought he was looking for.  
  
But even after his new found leadership, he still had to obey his father and drive Max around.  
  
Which became more annoying to him after the girl found interest in going to the mall almost every day.  
  
"Can't you just fucking skate someday?" He asked after she had come late once again. "We were supposed to meet up fifteen minutes ago. If you are late again, you are skating home. I don't give a shit about how far away it is."  
  
"Oh my god. Would it really kill you to just wait a little longer? I am sure your buddies are just fine without you."  
  
He narrowed his eyes at the girl standing in front of him, running his tongue over his bottom lip. "Watch the attitude, kid."  
  
"Or what?" His step-sister said, throwing her arms around her. He took it as a way of a challenge, getting into the car, he shut the door after him loudly before looking at her.  
  
"Skate home for all I care." He said, reaching for his car key to start the engine.  
  
"No, Billy! It's so far away!" She exclaimed, placing down her skateboard before trying to open the door which the teenage boy was holding. "Seriously, Billy!" She called out, shooting him an angered look which seemed to anger the male even more.  
  
He shut the door with all his strength, making the girl back away as the engine started and the car moved forward, the sound of something breaking under the tires and Max's loud 'No!' made Billy stop and get out of the car to look what he had drove over.  
  
His eyes fell onto the broken skateboard under his car and he swore under his breath, his anger suddenly vanishing. He knew Max loved her skateboard just as much as he loved his car.  
  
The girl even looked like there were tears in her eyes and Billy wanted to poke his eyes out.  
  
He watched the redhead pick up the pieces of her skateboard and look at her hands in disbelief before looking back up at him, a tear actually rolling down her cheek.  
  
"Fuck." The boy breathed out, tapping the hood of his car before getting back in. "Get in, Max." He said slowly, looking out of the window at the girl that just stood there.  
  
"Max, get in." Nothing. She just held onto her broken skateboard.  
  
"Please." He eventually gritted through his teeth and it seemed to surprise the girl since she actually got into the car. He started the car and drove off, trying to remember where he saw the store he wanted to go into.  
  
"Aren't you supposed to turn left here?" The redhead asked quietly and he grasped at the wheel when he recognized fear in her voice. He knew it was deserved but it made him feel like throwing up.  
  
"We are not going home. Not yet."  
  
The girl didn't ask any questions after that, she just silently waited until they got to where they were going. Which she later found out was a skate shop where Billy made her pick a new skateboard. She protested, saying she doesn't want anything from him but he just stood there and waited for a while until her eyes started to wonder around the store and explore.  
  
She did eventually pick out one and he paid for it, giving it to her without saying a word.  
  
"Are you going to tell them?" The boy later asked when they were driving home, watching the girl from the corner of his eye.  
  
"I don't think they would even notice it looks different." She spoke quietly and the male nodded.  
  
She knew he would get in trouble if she told the truth and she wouldn't. She cared for him.  
  
He wanted to shoot his brains out.  
  
——  
  
_He was almost seventeen when he didn't give a shit anymore.  
_  
During the past months, Billy was known as the heartbreak, the fighter and the leader. He went around, seducing girls with looks only, picking fights after a single bad comment, getting his boys in trouble for no reason.  
  
He felt alive when they had to run away to get away from the police and an angry neighbour.  
  
He felt alive when the girls kept on approaching him, wanting him to make them his.

  
He felt alive when his own hands made someone else bleed and plead under him.

  
He felt alive when he carelessly rode his car on the streets.

  
There was always a question in the back of his mind that kept on popping up. _'What would your mother say?'_

  
But he realized he doesn't care. He did what he wanted and he didn't give a shit about his father, Susan or Max.

  
Or that is what he kept on saying to himself anyway.

  
After another of the parties that happened every night in California and after another fight that happened between the two groups, Billy was driving down the street to pick up Max from the skatepark.  
  
He immediately noticed there were more bikes than usual but he didn't pay much attention to it, parking his car and getting out to look around for Max.  
  
The redhead was standing by the gate with a group of boys standing around her, it made Billy frown and throw the cigarette he had pulled up on the ground.  
  
As he got closer he recognized one boy. He was the youngest member of the boys group that Billy's group kept their rivality with.  
  
He walked faster when he noticed they were getting closer to his step-sister who seemed to be yelling at them and trying to get them to move.  
  
"Hey! What is going on here?" He called out angrily, looking all over the boys that seemed to be maybe a year or two younger than him. "Is there a problem, Max?" He said, eyeing the girl that was holding onto her skateboard.  
  
"Yeah, is there a problem, Max?" A voice called out after him and the male turned around to see more members of the boys group. They got them good last night, he knew they would be back for revenge but he didn't expect it to be at the skatepark with his step-sister around.  
  
He took a step forward to the redhead, shielding her as he looked all over them. "Haven't you had enough?" He asked cockily. He already knew he is not leaving the skatepark without a fight but he didn't have to look like a pussy while he was at it.  
  
"Can't we just go?" Came behind him and he slightly turned around to look at Max who looked like she wanted to be anywhere but there.  
  
"Yeah, Hargrove, listen to your sissy here. Just go. Listen to your little bitch." He could her the mockiness in the other guy's voice and he took a sharp turn back to face the male.  
  
"You are the one whining like a little bitch." He growled, his gaze fixed on the guy in front of him, his lips forming into a smirk when he could see his anger raising.  
  
"Here we go." He muttered smugly to himself as he moved to the side to avoid the punch before throwing a punch himself. It ended up being four against one but the blonde managed to mess up two of their faces. He was bleeding from his nose and his mouth, a bruise already forming next to his eye but he was pleased with himself.  
  
He was sort of mad that the fight ended when Max kept on yelling at them to stop until an older woman stopped in her tracks to scream at them that she will call the police, which made the other boys run away.  
  
Billy watched them ran as he wiped the blood with his hand, feeling Max's hand smacking his arm. "What is wrong with you?!" She exclaimed and he finally looked at her, noticing the anger and sadness in her eyes.  
  
"What?"  
  
"We could have just left."  
  
He scoffed a laugh before he started to walk towards his car with her right after him. "Seriously, Billy, look at you!"  
  
"Your point is?" He asked in annoyance, getting into the car, waiting for her to get in.  
  
"Why did you do that? You are getting in trouble for no reason."  
  
"There is always a reason."  
  
"Oh, really? And what was the reason for this fight then?" The girl called out, staring at her step-brother, watching him shift uncomfortably as he kept on driving.  
  
Billy didn't want to answer and admit that he wanted to beat the little shit's faces the second he saw them bothering her, he didn't want her to know he cares so she could use it against him in the future.  
  
He just gave her a look that lasted a second, seeing confusion change into realization and he could hear a silent 'Oh' before he drove home, not saying another word.  
  
Once his father and his step-mother saw the state he was in and that he had Max with him, they started bombarding him with questions about what happened but he didn't even bother answering. He just shrugged, earning another slap to his already beaten up face.  
  
He could see Max from the corner of his eye and Susan talking to her and he could hear Max saying something about boys bothering her and Billy getting into a fight. Susan had hugged her protectively.  
  
But Neil has had apparently enough since he slammed his hand against the table. "Enough! I have had enough of your street fights! Your actions will have consiquences!"  
  
Billy ignored him, going to his room when his father turned to talk to Max. He threw the dirty shirt over his head, seeing himself in the mirror. He always admired the way his face changed colours and painted itself red after a fight.  
  
His eyes lingered on his face before his gaze moved down as he pulled the fabric down on his hip a bit to reavel the words that linked him to his soulmate.  
  
He pulled the fabric back up, looking back in the mirror before walking to the bathroom.  
  
——  
  
_He was seventeen when his father told him they are moving to Hawkins._


	2. Soulmate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two abused boys share a bond they didn't ask for. Becoming close and questioning everything.
> 
> ——
> 
> Or: Since Billy isn't getting the redemption in the show, I am giving him one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for continuing this story!
> 
> This chapter follows Billy through his storyline in season two with my own take on it.

_soulmate;  
_  
a person ideally suited to another as a close friend or romantic partner.  
  
——  
  
He hates the name of the town. He hates the road he is driving on. He hates the faded sign showing them that they are here. He hates the house his father had bought. He hates his room. He hates it here.  
  
He hates the fact that his father had made them move. He hates that Max kept blaming him for it. He hates the looks he gets from Susan now. He hates his father for making them move. He hates his father for not leaving him back home. He hates how angrier he got.   
  
He is full of hate and anger but he decides to let it build up inside him for now, not letting it unleash.  
  
He knows what he has to do to feel like himself again, to feel like he is back in California again.  
  
That is why he puts on his best jeans for his first time going to the local high school, styles his hair like he always does and puts on one of his favourite denim jackets. Banging onto Max's door to make her finish getting ready, he goes to his car that he washed last night and gets in. Lighting a cigarette while he waits for his step-sister to get inside.  
  
He also hates that now he has to watch over her all the time. Their relationship got even worse after his father forced them to move. He knew Max loved California and he fucked it up for the both of them. But he would never say that out loud. Instead he blamed Max for it.   
  
He would just do what he knows. He would be Billy fucking Hargrove.  
  
That was why he chose to arrive in the best way possible. Windows open, engine cutting loudly through the streets with the sound of Metallica joining in.  
  
The male parked the car, stepping out and finally having a look around the place they called school here. He noticed people staring at him immediately. It made him smirk and roll his eyes at the same time.  
  
Billy threw his cigarette away, noticing that Max had already skated away. He made his way towards the building, feeling all the eyes on him, he walked with a small smirk.  
  
——  
  
Against his father disbelief, Billy was actually quite good at school. It was something only he had control of and only he had a saying in it. If he wanted a good grade, he got a good grade. If he wanted a bad grade, he got bad grade.  
  
He actually doesn't mind going to school, at least he gets to take his mind off things.  
  
Billy knocked on the door he was supposed to go in before entering, noticing that the class was full already. He looked up at the teacher who finally noticed him, giving him a smile before gesturing for him to come closer.  
  
"Everyone, this is our new student. He just moved here, right?" The teacher offers with a smile, looking over at the blonde who fights the urge to roll his eyes.  
  
"Billy Hargrove." He said loud and clear for everyone to hear. The teacher nodded and sent him to take a seat.   
  
The teenager boy looked around the class, noticing an empty seat next to some guy and a whole empty table by the window. He decided to go for the table. He was just about to sit down when a girl sitting in front of the table turned around.   
  
"Ashley and Amanda actually sit here. They are absent today but they always sit here." She said, sounding all innocent and Billy wanted to ask if she is fucking serious but decides not to, not wanting to start an argument during his first lesson.  
  
And so he turned around and tapped his fingers onto the table where the boy is sitting. "Is some Ashley sitting here as well?" He asks, looking down at the male who just shook his head.  
  
The blonde finally drops into his seat, looking over at the other boy sitting next to him. He didn't seem to show any interest and it made Billy confused. Usually people at least look at him.  
  
"Are you going to say something or just sit here in silence?" He spoke silently, not really wanting to interrupt whatever the teacher was talking about.   
  
The guy next to him just grabs the book and puts it in the middle of the table, obviously noticing that Billy does not have one yet. The blue eyed male is a bit surprised by this gesture.  
  
"And what about your name?"  
  
Still silence. The boy looks at him finally though, blue eyes met brown eyes but it was only followed by more silence until the other boy finally spoke. "Jonathan."  
  
"Jonathan who?"  
  
"Jonathan."  
  
Billy rolled his eyes and reached across the table, grabbing Jonathan's notebook and turning it over quickly to read his neighbour's full name. "Jonathan Byers." He annouces smugly, putting the boy's notebook back to its place and leaning back into his chair.  
  
"Low blow." Is what comes next from the now called Jonathan Byers and the blonde formes a smirk on his face, raising his hands in defense jokingly. "I never said I played fair."  
  
The brunette next to him actually snorts a laugh before looking down into his book as he started paying attention to what the proffesor had to say. Billy does the same a few moments later.  
  
——  
When he goes to school the next day, things go smoother.  
  
He flirts with two girls on his way to his first period. A group of guys approach him, greeting him and welcoming him to the school and he can already feel his leader needs kicking in. They invite Billy to a party and he is never the one to turn down an invite.  
  
Jonathan ignores him most of the time but he let's him copy his notes, earning a small 'Thanks' from the other boy. He sometimes doesn't asnwer him and other times, when he apparently feels more social, he tries to make conversation with him. Billy doesn't mind either.  
  
For the couple of next days things go even better and by October 31st, he already has girls running after him, boys that keep talking about challenging him to drinking games at the party and a classmate that actually answers his questions when he asks him something.  
  
He finds himself sitting in the fourth period, tapping his pencil against the table while he looks out of the window, his teacher's words going from one ear to another.  
  
He does however catch the 'pull out your notes' and he throws his head back in frustration. "Fuck." He mutters under his breath, seeing that he earned a raised eyebrow from Jonathan.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Does it actually surprise you that you forgot your notes? You forget like everything." The brunette says, his lips forming into a smile as he shakes his head softly.  
  
"Hey, fuck you man." The blonde says but there is no harshness in his words and his lips are actually formed into a grin as he watches the other boy put his bag onto his lap, clearly looking for something.  
  
"Did you take notes for me too or what?" Billy asks, wiggling his eyebrows at the other male who scoffed next to him. "Hell no."  
  
The blonde likes how easy it is to communicate with Jonathan now, he does bite back, but only a little bit, but it's just enough. Billy likes him.  
  
Jonathan puts some of his things onto the table, a few of his pictures poking out of one of his notebooks. Billy knows he should ask first but he doesn't, he just opens the notebook and looks at the pictures he revealed.  
  
There is a picture of a small boy smiling, a picture of an older woman cooking, a picture of woods and a picture of four boys hugging each other.  
  
"You took them or something?" He asks, looking back at his neighbour who nods, his hand reaching for the pictures.   
  
"That's cool, man." The blonde offers, shifting back in his seat. He has never met anyone who liked photography. He found it quite interesting.  
  
 **"I was created to create."** The brunette says sarcastically, waving the pictures in front of his face before putting them back with a small grin placed his face.  
  
Billy almost chokes on air and falls from his chair. His eyes widen and he stares at the boy next to him. "What did you say?" He says, sounding almost breathless but still harsh.  
  
"Well, it's what my mom always says. That **I was created to create**." The other boy says, looking a bit uncomfortable at Billy's sudden change of tone.  
  
The blonde's hip starts burning and he knows what it means. His soulmate has said the words. His soulmate has said the words to him. He had met his soulmate. His soulmate was Jonathan.  
  
He feels like puking and so he just grabs his bag and exits the classroom without saying a single word.  
  
——  
  
He wanted to break something, he wanted to puke, he wanted to scream at Jonathan, he wanted to punch him in the face, he wanted to tell him he doesn't want him as his soulmate, he wanted to drive away, to run away.  
  
But instead he had to be standing in front of his car, waiting for his step-sister because he had to drive her home. But he was pissed off already and the fact she was late wasn't helping.  
  
He finally heard the sound of her skateboard and saw her walk up to him. "You are late again."  
  
"Yeah, I had to get catch up homework."  
  
He scoffed and turned around slightly. "Jesus, I don't care. You are late again and you are skating home, do you hear me?" He said, taking a drag from his cigarette before throwing it away.  
  
He can see the high school students pouring out of the school in groups and he gets into the car before he can see Jonathan.  
  
The boy finally feels some tension leave his body when he sits behind the wheel of his favourite thing on the whole planet. Some of his thoughs get pushed back into his mind and he just drives for a while.  
  
He eventually sighs, looking out of the window before speaking. "God, this place is such a shithole."  
  
"It's not that bad."  
  
He turns to his step-sister, giving her a ridiculous look. "No?" He says before pulling down the window, bringing his fingers up to hold onto his nose. "You smell that, Max? That's actually shit. Cow shit!"  
  
"I don't see any cows." The girl says, pulling the window back up.  
  
"Clearly, you haven't met the high school girls." He spits out before continuing. "So what? You like it here now?"  
  
"No!"  
  
"Then why are you defending it?"  
  
"I am not."  
  
"Sure sounds like it." He can already feel the tension building in the car and it was exactly what he wanted. A fight.  
  
To his surprise Max just shrugs. "It's just that we are stuck here, so."  
  
"Mhm, you are right, we are stuck here." He says, already knowing he is going to get what he wanted. "And whose fault is that?"  
  
Billy can very well hear the silent 'yours' but he wants to hear it loud and clear. "What did you say?"  
  
"Nothing."  
  
He licks his lips, squeezing the wheel as he keeps on driving. "You say it's my fault?"  
  
"No." The girl is quick to answer but the older boy knows very well that she blames him but it doesn't stop him from blaming her.   
  
"You know whose fault it is. Say it." He says, turning to look at her before turning his gaze back onto the road when she keeps on being quiet. "Maax. Say it."  
  
The silence treatment reminds him of his father and Jonathan and he is done with it.  
  
"Say it!" He turns into her direction, yelling out the words before stamping on the engine, driving like he knows it best. Recklessly to the sound of music.  
  
"Billy, slow down." His step-sister finally speaks and it makes him raise his eyebrows. He looks at the road and sees a couple of boys on their bikes. "Are those your new friends?"  
  
"No, I don't know them!" He knows she is lying. And Billy hates when someone lies to him.  
  
"Then I guess you don't care if I hit them then, huh? Do I get bonus points when I get them all in one go?" He says, keeping his eyes on the boys, not even knowing why he is doing what he is doing. He would later explain it to himself as 'he felt like it'.  
  
"Billy, stop, it's not funny!"  
  
The mentioned boy just stares at her as he keeps on driving. He wants her to do something. To yell at him, to punch him, something.  
  
When he looks back at the boys in front of him, he thinks he recognizes one of them but his vision is a bit blurry but there is that thought in the back of his mind, telling him that this might be the boys in Jonathan's pictures and for a second he thinks about how hurt Jonathan would be if something happened to them. _He would deserve it for leaving me_ , he thinks.  
  
"Billy, come on, stop it, it's not funny!"  
  
He ignores her and when he hears another 'Stop!' he only speeds up. He doesn't know what he is doing anymore. He just wants Max to fucking react.  
  
And when she finally pulls the wheel to the side, making sure they don't hit the boys, he feels almost proud. He feels alive again, just like back in California. "Yeah! That was a close one, huh?" He calls out, staring at his step-sister that just looks freaked out. He doesn't care and he just laughs bitterly, an image of Jonathan finding out the boys on the road crosses his mind and he almost regrets it.   
  
Almost.  
  
——  
  
He throws on his leather jacket, fixing his hair before leaving for the party he was invited to. He wants to get shit-faced to forget about everything.   
  
He hopes his guess was right and Jonathan is not a party type. He doesn't want to see him, he doesn't want to get reminded that he is his soulmate. That soulmate that ignored him for years. That soulmate that didn't want to do anything with him.  
  
He catches a ride with the boys that invited him, Tommy being one of them. He is already trying to befriend Billy and the blonde welcomes it. Tommy reminds him of the boys he used to hang out in California and he wants to feel like back home again.  
  
The blonde gets challenged to drinking games immediately and he gladly accepts.  
  
Holding onto the keg, he can hear people behind him shouting numbers but he doesn't pay attention to them, the alcohol already filling his body. He eventually manages to catch '22' and he decides it's enough, offering a chance to anyone who wants to challenge him.  
  
He spits out the remaining beer in his mouth before yelling out in excitement with the boys around him, feeling the beer drip down onto his chest. Tommy hands him back his cigarette and he can hear the people yelling out 'keg king'. The leader in him is satisfied.   
  
"That's how you do it Hawkings, that's how you do it!" He exclaimes, all the tension from earlier disappearing as he listens to the people chanting his name.  
  
They enter the party again and Billy feels like this is exactly where he is supposed to be.  
  
Tommy says something about following him and Billy does, not knowing anyone that much here, he decides to stick with him. "We got ourselves a new keg king, Harrington." He can hear the boy speaking and he looks at the boy he is talking to.   
  
He steps closer to him, examining his face when he finally takes down his glasses. Definitely a leader type.   
  
Billy smirks and licks his lips when he realizes he has got a rival. _This is going to be so much fun_ , he thinks.  
  
He brushes past the boy called Harrington and moves around the party. He is sure Tommy and the others are right behind him. He is not sure where he is going but when he sees Jonathan enter the party, he stops in his tracks and changes the direction.  
  
"Let's go for another round." He annouces to the boys, making his way to the kitchen to get a drink. He was getting too sober for this.  
  
——  
  
The blonde skips the classes he has with the brown haired boy, spending one hour with Tommy who asks him if he wants to join the basketball team. He agrees.  
  
That's how he finds himself running around the gym, enjoying being back in his element. Shirtless and ready to win. Sports always let him blow off some steam and when he noticed the guy he was introduced to yesterday at the party as the former king, he smiles for himself, knowing he can annoy him.  
  
They play around, his team winning, and he can finally see the boy dribbling the ball and he goes to take it from him.  
  
His eyes don't leave the other guy's face and he focuses on the sound of the ball hitting the floor, counting his steps in his mind. When the other boy tries to go through him, he quickly turns around, blocking him from getting where he wanted.  
  
"Harrington, right?" He says, keeping him in place. "I heard you used to run this school. That true?" He challenges, using a little more strength to keep the other male in place. "King Steve they used to call you, huh?" He continued, mocking the other one.  
  
A grin makes its way onto his face when he can sense Steve getting frustrated with him. "Then you turned bitch."  
  
"Hey, maybe you could just shut up and play the game?" The other male finally replies and that's Billy's cue to finally take the ball away from him, his body pulling away from Steve and it makes the other boy fall to the floor since he was leaning onto him.  
  
Billy easily scores another points and highfives Tommy in the process before turning around to see Steve looking at the points, his grin widens and he licks his lips, thinking that messing with him might be easier than he thought.  
  
A girl Steve was with the other night calls for him and the blonde goes back to his game.  
  
After finishing the game, the blonde boy goes to meet Tommy and the other guys outside and he sees Jonathan and the girl that called out for Steve earlier sitting on a car. He wonders if she is the reason why his soulmate didn't want him in his life. Maybe he had someone else already and he didn't have to worry about being alone.  
  
It makes him stressed and when he comes back for his fourth period, finally deciding to face the other boy, Jonathan never arrives to the class and now Billy is just angry again.  
  
He picks up some random girl on his way home, wanting to get his mind off things.  
  
The boy then stands with the girl next to his car, leaning against it as he smokes his cigarette to calm his thoughts. He has been quite ignoring the girl's mumbling but he replies every so often to make her think he listens.  
  
He is looking down at his boots when she speaks again. "So is your sister coming or what?"  
  
Her voice annoys him and he is annoyed with himself for deciding to take a girl home. He is annoyed with Max for being late.  
  
The blonde then looks at his watch before looking to the parking lot, not seeing his step-sister anywhere. "Screw her, little shit can skate home." He annouces, spitting on the ground and throwing his cigarette away.  
  
He then makes his way to the driver's seat. "And don't call her that."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Sister. She is not my sister." He can hear himself saying even though he knows it's not true.  
  
——  
  
The next day there is no sight of Jonathan anywhere. He also notices the girl he was with yesterday is absent from the class as well. He growls under his breath, surviving the lessons and feeling like as if he was abandoned again.  
  
He is glad he has another practice today, he can get some of his anger out. Maybe get a raise from Steve if he will feel like it.  
  
The game goes almost the same as yesterday, his team is winning even though the other team are doing better this time.  
  
He finds Steve again, blocking him for most of the time. Right now he goes for the ball and sees Steve trying to reach for it, he laughs mocklingly as he starts bouncing the ball.  
  
"Alright, alright, alright! King Steve!" He exclaims, poiting to the other male as he starts moving towards him, noticing the taller boy takes steps back instead.  
  
"King Steve, everyone!" He continues, getting closer to Steve. "I like it. Played tough today." He offers with a smirk placed on his face.  
  
"Jesus, do you ever stop talking, man. Come on!"  
  
He laughs almost genuinely as he keeps bouncing the ball effortlessly. "What? You afraid the coach is gonna bench you now that I am here, huh?" He challenges the boy once again before easily knocking him onto the ground and going for the score.  
  
After the ball falls through the basket, he gives Tommy a high five and then turns back to walk towards the boy on the floor.  
  
He looks down at him and offers a hand for him to take, he can see the other boy hesitating for a second before he takes his hand. Billy immediately pulls him up slightly. "You were moving your feet. Plant them next time, draw a charge." He says before letting him drop to the floor again.  
  
The game finishes and the boys find themselves in the shower. He didn't really get a raise from the other boy and he is debating if he is going to lay low or try to press him. He himself doesn't even know what is going to happen most of the time. He finds himself to be quite unpredictable.  
  
He is standing under the shower next to him, watching his face as he looks for any signs of frustration. "Don't sweat it, Harrington. Today is just not your day, man." He decides to keep it low eventually.  
  
"Yeah, not your week." He can hear Tommy saying as he grabs his towel and looks to the male that is speaking before turning his gaze back to Steve.   
  
"You and the princess break up for one day, she's already running off with the freak's brother."  
  
The blonde can see the look on his face and he has a feeling he knows very well about who Tommy is talking about. "Oh, shit. You don't know. Jonathan and the princess skipped yesterday. Still haven't shown. But that must just be a coincidence, right?"  
  
Billy wants to punch his face for giving him the confirmation he didn't want or need. So Jonathan was with Steve's ex-girlfriend.  
  
He watches Tommy leave, regretting befriending him and not being to able to punch him right now. He instead turns back to Steve.  
  
"Don't take it too hard, man. A pretty boy like you has got nothing to worry about. Plenty of bitches in the sea." He says, leaning against the shower before turning Steve's shower off with a slight smirk placed on his face. He was very well at hiding his emotions when he wanted to.  
  
"Am I right?" He then says, patting the male next to him onto the back before turning to leave.  
  
"I will be sure to leave you some."  
  
——  
  
A few days passed and Jonathan was still nowhere to be seen. Billy told himself to 'fuck it' and makes himself go back to the days of hating his soulmate. He grew up without his soulmate and he would continue doing so now, even though he finally found out who it was.  
  
He was leaning against his car, his eyes wandering around the parking lot as he waited for his step-sister. He finally spotted her and he narrowed his eyes when he saw her speaking to one of the boys of the little group he saw around a few times.  
  
It was the boys in Jonathan's pictures and he knew one of them was Jonathan's brother. And he had a pretty good idea who that was. But Max was speaking angrily to some other kid until she finally skated towards him.  
  
He didn't like her hanging out with boys. Last time she was with boys, he ended up in a fist fight that got him in this shitty town. And she wasn't just talking to him, she was yelling at the boy. And he was yelling back at her. He didn't like that. He really didn't like that.  
  
The boy moved to get into his car when the girl finally reached him, his fingers playing with the cigarette he was holding. "That kid you were talking to. Who is he?"  
  
"He's no one."  
  
"No one?"  
  
"This kid from my class."  
  
Billy looks up and sees the boy walking back to the school, they lock eyes for a brief moment before the blonde gets into the car, shutting the door behind him and lighting his cigarette, taking a drag from it. "Why was he talking to you?"  
  
"It was just about a stupid class assignment."  
  
"Then why're you so upset?" He could hear the hidden sadness in hear voice and he hated when she lied to him, or when anyone did for that matter.  
  
"I'm not!"   
  
"He causing you trouble?" He speaks strongly, flicking his cigarette out of the window.  
  
"Why do you care?"  
  
He takes a deep breath, resisting the need to roll his eyes. "Because, Max, you're a piece of shit, but we're family now whether we like it or not, meaning I'm stuck looking out for you."  
  
"What would I ever do without-" He cuts her off by grabbing onto her wrist. He hates it when she mocks him. "Hey! This is serious shit, okay? I'm older than you."  
  
"And something you learn is that there are a certain type of people in this world that you stay away from, and that kid, Max." He grits through his teeth, pulling her a bit closer to him. "That kid is one of them."  
  
She tries to back away but he pulls her closer one more time. "You stay away from him, you hear me? Stay away." He finishes harshly, squeezing her wrist before letting her go.  
  
He is not letting her ruin his life any more than she already did.  
  
——  
  
The next day Max asks him to drive him to the Arcade. Or Max tells Susan who asks Billy to drive her. Billy having no saying in the matter, drives the redhead to the Arcade.  
  
"If you're not out in an hour." He starts and the girl cuts him off. "Walking home. Yeah, yeah, I know."  
  
"Hey! Watch the attitude, shitbird." He calles out, riding off as soon as she closed the door, seeing the middle finger he was given in the mirror. It almost makes him grin.  
  
He drives around the town, stops at the gas station and the mall before he goes back to wait for his step-sister.  
  
The boy is listening to the radio, looking out of the window to see if the redhead is coming. He eventually spots her but he can also see the boy she was talking to earlier and his face hardens at the fact she didn't listen to him once again.  
  
"The hell I tell you?" The boy says once she is sat down in the car.  
  
"I'm not late."  
  
"You know what I'm talking about."  
  
"Oh, Lucas?"  
  
He scoffs a laugh, rolling his eyes behind the glasses he was wearing. "So he has a name now, huh?"  
  
"It's a small town, okay? We weren't hanging out."  
  
He knows she is lying and she knows he knows she is lying. "Hmm."  
  
"Well, you know what happens when you lie." He says, giving her one more chance to say the truth.  
  
"I'm not lying."  
  
The male turns over to look at her, his eyes digging into her before he droves off. He wonders what his step-sister and the boy had been up to. She wouldn't lie if they were just playing her dumb games in the Arcade.  
  
They must have been hanging out before in school he thinks and starts speeding up. He is silent, waiting for the girl to say something but she doesn't. She just keeps staring out of the window and holding onto her skateboard.  
  
His face hardens once again when she doesn't even try to explain herself, trying to keep him in the lie instead. He hates when she lies. It makes him feel disrespected. And angry.  
  
That is why he throws her skateboard onto the ground as soon as they get out of the car, not knowing if the board will break or not. It does, but it's repairable. He is satisfied for now.  
  
——  
  
Later that day, the boy is finally having his alone time, doing whatever he wants. Lifting weights and smoking while his ears get filled by the loud noises of music.  
  
He counts each time he raises the weight to his shoulder, his gaze flickering a bit to the side when he hears the door bell. Max knows he is exercising. Max knows he values the time he exersice. Max knows she is supposed to get the door. "21."  
  
The door bell rings again and he ignores it, bringing the weight up again. "22." The door bell starts ringing once again and he puts the weight down angrily. "Max! Are you getting that or what?"  
  
"Okay!"  
  
"Swear to god, Max!" He yells out back at her, taking a drag from his cigarette before taking the weights again, going faster this time.  
  
He does a few more pulls up before changing the position, raising the weight up and down a few times before putting it down and sitting up. The girl has closed the door behind her and stayed there for a while now. It must have been someone she knows.  
  
Billy takes another drag from his cigarette, waiting for a second before standing up to walk slowly towards the door, giving the girl some time to get back before he interrupts her sweet talk.  
  
He opens his drink as he keeps on walking to the door, taking a sip from it, eyeing the door. He wonders if it's Jonathan's brother, thinking about if he could get some information out of him.  
  
The boy is almost at the door when Max returns, looking as if she hurrying somewhere. He quickly puts his arm on the fireplace to make her stop in her tracks.   
  
"Who the hell were you talking to?"  
  
"Mormons." He can see her hesitate and knows she is lying again. He wonders why does she keep doing that to herself.  
  
"Mormons?" Every muscle in his face is suggesting he doesn't trust anything she says.  
  
"Talkative ones."  
  
She brushes past him and he looks after her, letting her go and instead moving towards the door, quickly opening them to look outside.  
  
He steps outside, looking from left to right to see if he can see someone. He sees no one and he isn't even surprised. He decides to let it go for now, going back to his weights.  
  
——  
  
It's a few hours later when he is standing in front of his closet, getting ready for the date he had planned earlier. He wanted to get his mind off things, to have a few hours with a girl without having to think about his father following every step he does, to think about Max and whatever trouble she is getting herself into or Jonathan who has been absent for days now.   
  
He just wants to get some peace.  
  
That's why he is trying to look his best since the girl he was meeting actually didn't look half bad. And he wanted to return the favour even though he knew she had a thing for him already.  
  
He steps towards the mirror, lighting his cigarette before taking a long drag out of it, he starts moving to the rythm of music filling the room, glad that it's one of his favourite songs playing. He feels as if tonight might be good. Max has been quiet in her room for hours now and he got to do whatever he wanted.  
  
The boy sprays his hair a bit, fixing the curl that is falling down onto his forehead. He then continues to put cologne onto his wrist, rubbing his wrists together before he goes onto pouring some more into his hand and slides his hand down his pants to put cologne down onto himself as well.  
  
He then looks into the mirror once again, checking everything and mostly his ass in his favourite jeans. He caught numerous girls looking at his behind and he was quite proud of it really. He smirked at himself in the mirror, taking another long drag before winking at himself. The boy is just about to finish when he hears a knock on his door and Susan calling out for him.  
  
"Yeah, I am a little bit busy in here, Susan." He says easily, not wanting to talk to the woman right now.  
  
"Open the door! Right now!" He can already tell his father is angry for some reason.  
  
He puts his cigarette down and moves to the door, opening them to find Susan looking at him with worried expression and his father looking at him with an angry expression.  
  
"What's wrong?" He asks softly, not wanting to ruin his night by giving his father a wrong impression of his behaviour.  
  
"Why don't you tell us?"  
  
"Because I don't know." He frowns slightly, shifting his gaze from his father to his step-mother instead. "We can't find Maxine."  
  
"And her window is open."  
  
He stares at his father and he already knows he is fucked. He can't believe the redhead would sneak out on him. Actually, he can.  
  
"Where is she?"  
  
The anger in his father's voice is raising and Billy shifts onto his feet. "I don't know."  
  
"You don't know?"  
  
"Look, I am sure she just went to the, I don't know, the Arcade or something." He moves to his closet, hoping he can get this over with quickly. "I am sure she is fine." He continues, grabbing his favourite jacket.  
  
"You were supposed to watch her."  
  
The boy sighs as he starts to put on his jacket. "I know dad. I was. It's just you guys were three hours late, and, well, I have a date." He finishes, hesitating a bit at the end, finally turning around to face his father, his face softening a bit. "I am sorry, okay?" He didn't want to fight tonight.  
  
"That's why you've been staring at yourself in the mirror like some faggot instead of watching your sister?"  
  
He can't believe what he is hearing, he is following Max's ass everywhere. "I have been looking after her all week, Dad." He starts more loudly than he intented to, ignoring the raise of eyebrows he got from his father as he continued.  
  
"Okay? She wants to run off, then that's her problem, all right? She's 13 years old. She shouldn't need a full-time babysitter." He spits out, getting what he wanted to say for some time off his chest.  
  
"And she's not my sister!" He adds as he turns off the radio, regretting his words immediately when he is pushed to the shelf. His eyes are meeting his father's and he just wants his father to hit him already. He had been actually excited for tonight and now it was ruined.  
  
"What did we talk about?" The boy stays quiet, breathing heavily through his nose and that's when the slap comes. His father then grabs his jaw, making the boy look at him. "What did we talk about?"  
  
Billy stares at him for a second before answering, his gaze not leaving his father's because he knows better than to look down. "Respect and responsibility."  
  
"That is right. Now, apologize to Susan."  
  
He knows Susan has not been a witness to much of his and his father's encouters but he knows she doesn't aprrove, but he also knows she is smart to stay quiet.  
  
"I'm sorry, Susan." He then says, feeling his father's eyes dig into his soul.  
  
"It's okay, Neil, really-" He can hear Susan talking and he would feel almost thankful for her words if his father wasn't inches away from his face. "No, it's not okay. Nothing about his behavior is okay."  
  
Billy is expecting another punch but nothing comes so far.  
  
"But he's gonna make up for it. He's gonna call whatever whore he's seeing tonight and cancel their date.And then he's gonna go find his sister. Like the good, kind, respecting brother that he is."  
  
The change of his father's behaviour almost scares him.  
  
He doesn't give up on a fight easily. Billy got that from him. That is why he starts breathing even more heavily as he watches his father. "Isn't that right, Billy?"  
  
"Isn't that right?" His father repeats himself, yelling it into Billy's face instead and he hates himself for almost jumping up. He stares at his father, his mind shutting down already. It has been too much for him lately. "Yes, sir." He manages to get out.  
  
"I'm sorry, I couldn't hear you." The blonde can feel his eyes water and he pulls himself together and answering his father with more stable voice now. "Yes, sir".  
  
"Find Max." Is the last thing his father says and the boy watches him leave, noticing Susan looking up at him for a split second before she follows her husband outside and closes the door behind them.  
  
He finally blinks and he can feel a tear scroll down his cheek. He hasn't cried for a long time. His hands are trembling and he mutters a silent curse before bringing his hands up to rub his face.  
  
 _So much for the nice evening.  
_  
——  
  
He calls his date, not even apologizing about canceling but mostly asking if she knows where the boy named Lucas his step-sister has been hanging around lives. The girl does and Billy leaves immediately to drive to the house.  
  
Mrs. Sinclair is almost no help but she does lead him in another direction and that is why he is standing in front of the Wheeler's house right now.  
  
He rings the door bell a couple of times until the door finally opens, reavealing a good looking woman behind them. Her skin was pink, her hair was wet and she only had a silk robe on. Everything was suggesting she has just gotten out of the bath. _What a sight.  
_  
"Oh." He smiles immediately, throwing all his frustration away as he focuses on the woman in front of him. "Hi." He looks her up and down and he has to admit she was very good looking.  
  
"Hi." The blonde keeps an eye contact with the woman as he continues, sounding as smugly as he could. "I, uh, didn't realize Nancy had a sister."  
  
The woman chuckles in front of him and he already knows he is winning her over. "What is so funny?"  
  
"I'm Nancy's mother." She says, pointing to nowhere and his smile widens. It could be fun getting involved with the girl's mother. "No." He answers in disbelief.  
  
"Yes." He watches her play with her hair and his eyes follow her fingers as he chuckles softly. "Mrs. Wheeler." He purrs out.  
  
"Um, I'm sorry, and you are?"  
  
"Billy." He speaks, not breaking the eye contact with the woman in front of him as he reaches out his hand for her to take, placing his hand onto the woman's as soon as she does. "Billy Hargrove."  
  
"And you must be here for Nancy." The woman was quick to reply and so was Billy. "Nancy? No, no, no." He shakes his head as he looks down for a second before looking straight back up into her eyes.  
  
"Not my type."  
  
The woman before him is practically inviting him inside already, he can see it in her eyes. "Uh. No, actually, I am looking for my little sister Max. Goes by Maxine." He starts, seeing the woman shake her head slightly and he continues. "She's been missing all day, and, uh, to be honest with you, I've been worried sick, you know." He speaks softly, eyeing the woman once again, hearing her quiet 'Oh.'  
  
"I thought she was at Lucas', but Mrs. Sinclair said your house is the the designated hangout, so, you know." He smugly continues, his smile getting wider by each word and he leans against the door frame, the blue eyes never leaving the browns. "Here I am."  
  
He watches her lick her lips before she invites him inside. She slowly walks to the kitchen and he follows her, studying her moves with a smirk placed on his face.  
  
She tells him her son hasn't been home for a while now and gives him another adress. This time to the Byers's house and he almost loses his grin when he realizes he is going to Jonathan's house. He is only hoping the brunette isn't there.  
  
Billy is watching the woman write the address, playing with the cookie that was offered to him a few seconds ago.  
  
"Their driveway is pretty dark this time of night. So drive slowly." The woman speaks, handing him the note and the smile never seems to leave her face.  
  
He rewards her with one of his own. "Always."  
  
"And when you see Mike, tell him to come home already, okay?"  
  
"You're a real lifesaver, you know that?" He speaks, his voice sounding low and smug as he holds yet another eye contact with the woman, not even blinking when he takes a bite of the cookie.  
  
"Anytime." The woman offers another smile and the boy nods slightly, grinning as if he just won the lottery. "I will see you later." He says before making his way outside, swinging his hips slightly since he knows the woman is watching him.  
  
Once he is inside the car, he does drop his grin, looking over at the note once again and his stomach clenches a bit. He doesn't want to see the other boy.   
  
But he pulls himself together once again as he starts the car, driving to his soulmate's house.  
  
——  
  
On the ride to the house, the blonde prepares himself if he has to face the boy. And he is quite surprised when he sees Steve standing outside.  
  
He gets out of the car, studying the male standing in front of him before taking a drag from his cigarette and leaning against his car. "Am I dreaming, or is that you, Harrington?"   
  
"Yeah, it's me. Don't cream your pants."  
  
Billy actually grins at that little comment as he takes off his jacket and throws it inside the car before slamming the door closed. "What are you doing here, amigo?"  
  
"I could ask you the same thing. Amigo." The two boys walk closer to each others, only standing a few feet away now.  
  
Billy hooks his hands behind his belt as he watches the male in front of him.   
  
"Looking for my step-sister. A little birdie told me she was here."  
  
"Huh, that's weird. I don't know her."  
  
"Small? Redhead? Bit of a bitch."  
  
"Doesn't ring a bell. Sorry, buddy."  
  
The blonde nods slightly and sighs. Steve doesn't know Billy knows whose house it is. And he definitely doesn't seem to know Billy noticed Max from the window a minute ago. The boy takes the cigarette out of his mouth as he goes to exclaim the situation. "You know, I don't know, this.." He clicks his tongue, looking up at the other boy.   
  
"This whole situation, Harrington, I don't know. It's giving me the heebie-jeebies." He is wondering why the hell he found his step-sister right here, with a bunch of kids and Steve. He starts to feel worried, protective and angry all at once.  
  
"Oh, yeah? Why's that?"  
  
Billy takes another drag from his cigarette as he shrugs slightly. "My 13-year-old sister goes missing all day. And then I find her with you in a stranger's house. And you lie to me about it." He is speaking harshly during the last words as he is eyeing Steve.  
  
"Man, were you dropped too much as a child, or what?" The brunette might not realize he is not helping himself with comments like this but it's too late since it's already sinking into Billy's brain and he runs his tongue through his teeth.  
  
"I don't know what you don't understand about what I just said. She's not here."  
  
"Then who is that?" He says as he points to the window, deciding this little game is over.  
  
"Oh, shit. Listen-" Billy pushes him to the ground before he can say something else. "I told you to plant your feet." He says coldly, kicking the other male to the stomach and proceeding to enter the house, opening the door harshly. "Well, well, well."  
  
The boy slams the door behind him, his gaze hardening at the view of the boy he told Max to stay away from. "Lucas Sinclair. What a surprise." He then shifts his gaze to his step-sister. "I thought I told you to stay away from him, Max."  
  
"Billy, go away."  
  
"You disobeyed me." He has had enough of everyone's shit. "And you know what happens when you disobey me."  
  
"Billy-" She starts but he cuts her off. "I break things." He says, grabbing onto Lucas's collar as he shoves him to the shelf multiple times, ignoring the voices behind him and the creepy paintings falling down from the walls.   
  
He instead looks the boy dead in the eyes and speaks harshly. "Since Maxine won't listen to me, maybe you will. You stay away from her." He spits out, pushing the boy against the shelf once again. He doesn't recognize his voice anymore as he starts to sound more and more like his father.  
  
"Stay away from her! You hear me?"  
  
"I said get off me!" The boy yells out and kicks him into his crotch. If it was another situation, he would actually be impressed by the boy but this wasn't another situation.  
  
This was a situation where Max had been a pain in the ass for weeks, where she didn't listen to him when he told her to stay away. A situation after he had another encounter with his father. And now was standing in Jonathan's house that apparently had no furnite but only creepy drawings. With the boy nowhere to be found. And Billy was pissed.   
  
"You are so dead, Sinclair! You're dead." He says coldly, preparing to shove the boy against the wall once more but he feels a tug on his shoulder and he is met with Steve's face. "No, you are."  
  
And then he punches him and Billy is laughing. Finally he managed to make Steve do something. "Looks like you got some fire in you after all, huh?" He calls out, throwing his hands around as he continues. "I've been waiting to meet this King Steve everybody's been telling me so much about." He spits out.  
  
"Get out." The other boy says, pointing onto his chest, touching his mother's necklace. It feels as a way of disrespect to Billy and so he swings his arm to hit Steve but he manages to move down.  
  
The taller boy hits him a few times and Billy is still laughing. The other boy actually seems to think he can hurt him. Seems to think he can do something his father didn't manage to do already. He is pretty sure he has been in more fist fights than Steve and he knows how to fight. He wants to get a proper raise from Steve first though.  
  
He is pushed against the counter and he laughs again, his fingers finding a plate which was just something he could use. He grabs the plate and smashes it against Steve's head, not caring if he hurts him or not.  
  
The blonde then moves towards him, swinging his arm again and hitting him this time, making Steve stumble on his feet. Billy sees him fighting to stand and he grips onto his jacket. "No one tells me what to do." Coldness and harshness dripping from his tone as he headbutts the other male, making him fall down on the floor.  
  
Adrenaline is pounding through his every sense and he yells out loudly before tackling Steve to the floor, his fists starting to meet the pretty face. Steve's face changing to his father's in his mind.  
  
He knows once he starts he is not going to stop. He knows once he starts Steve is not going to be able to do anything. He knows once he starts he would need to stopped. He wonders if this is the moment when Jonathan suddenly appears and gets him off the other boy.  
  
But there is no Jonathan and Billy loses all control, his fists already getting used to meeting the boy's face. He sees the blood on his hands, he sees the blood on Steve's face and he tastes the blood in his mouth.  
  
He raises his hand for another punch when he feels something sting into his neck and he stops all of his actions, standing up confused and angry. He looks up and sees his step-sister and he raises his hand to take out the thing placed in his neck. It was a needle. Max put a needle into his neck.  
  
"The hell is this?" He is more confused than angry, he is actually kind of impressed.  
  
His vision starts becoming blurry and he starts filling dizzy. "You little shit, what did you do?" He says and he has only a seconds left standing before he falls to the floor.  
  
She has drugged him. He could only laugh at that. He then hears her moving around the room and he watches her as she stands over him with a bat in her hands. A very spiky bat. _What the fuck?_  
  
"From here on out, you leave me and my friends alone. Do you understand?"  
  
"Screw you." He mutters out and he watches her swing the bat and hit the floor only few inches away from his crotch. His head falls back onto the floor and he can hear her yelling but his mind is preoccupied when he realizes the fact that she had stood up to him.  
  
She had stopped him. She had stood up to him. She defended herself. She was making him stay away. She wasn't scared of him. Something he wasn't able to bring himself into doing towards his father.  
  
"Say you understand! Say it! Say it!"   
  
"I understand." He mumbled, his eyelids felt heavy and his vision more blurry.  
  
"What?" He would chuckle if he could but it was hard enough to keep his eyes open.   
  
"I understand." He repeated. His last thoughts before blacking out were that she had stood up to him. And he respected that.  
  
——  
  
It's exactly a month later when he is standing in front of the Christmas tree, his eyes wandering around the tree and he fights a scoff. He stopped liking Christmas after his mom died.   
  
He wanted to go out tonight but he realized it's the Snow Ball dance and that he is supposed to drive Max. He stayed home and waited for the girl to get ready.  
  
They didn't talk about what happened in the Byers' home that evening. The boy walked home after he woke up, worried about his car but he figured Steve took it. He didn't ask anything when the Camaro was returned to him the next day in perfect condition.  
  
He stayed outside that night, waiting until the girl got home, not wanting to go inside without her. He knew it would end badly. And so he waited until she got there and then they walked together through the door, neither of them saying anything.  
  
Billy figured Max came up with some lame excuse and Neil and Susan would of course believe her. He didn't really care about what happened to him, but Neil seemed satisfied that his step-daughter is back home.  
  
He still drove her wherever she wanted, still picked her from school, still drove her to school. But they didn't talk. They went back to ignoring each others. Sometimes he would let her switch the tapes placed in the radio in his car, sometimes they would nod at each others. But it all seemed as if they were two people that didn't know each others, even though the truth was far away from that.  
  
He never spoke about the evening with Steve either. They kept on seeing each others during the basketball practise and Billy sometimes focused on Steve and sometimes he focused on other players. He didn't give him an apology and he wouldn't. They did however share a look after Tommy asked what happened to him and if Jonathan was the one to beat him up again.  
  
It raised questions in Billy but he didn't ask Steve nor Jonathan. Instead he asked Tommy who happily told him the things that happened in the past. Tommy seemed to be useful lately, taking Billy to the gym and offering him his boxing gloves when he noticed the blonde wanted to beat his anger out.  
  
As for Jonathan, Billy ignored him as well. He went back to only hanging out with the guys that saw him as their leader. He spent his time with Tommy and his friends. Sometimes with some girls from school. He couldn't complain, this was what he wanted but sometimes it felt like as if it wasn't enough for him.   
  
He switched places with the Wheeler girl without even asking. The girl Nancy used to sit with only seemed to welcome the change. Jonathan looked as if he was going to ask why when he first came to the class, seeing their table empty but he didn't and he sat with Nancy from now.  
  
Billy sometimes sneaked a glance here and there at the other boy, wondering how it would be if he knew Billy is his soulmate. Or how it would be if he had him in his life. But he doubted the boy would be interested. He seemed happy with Nancy and the kids.  
  
The blonde saw the kids around a few times and they sometimes gave him a glance, he only raised an eyebrow but didn't do anything. He now knew Max could protect herself, he didn't need to protect her from every single person. It was kind of a relief.  
  
Now the boy was slowly walking to wait by the door, passing his step-sister's room as he did so.  
  
"Ow, ow. That hurts."  
  
"It's gonna be worth it. Promise."  
  
He looked up at Max at the same moment she looked at him and he stood there for a moment before leaving to wait by the door, he could still hear Susan's voice.  
  
"See? Pretty."  
  
The drive to the dance was the same as usual, they rode in silence, kind of comfortable now. It was awkward at first but now it was just how they did things.  
  
The girl was getting out of the car and Billy looked at her, tapping his fingers against the wheel. "Have fun." He eventually said. Speaking slowly and almost without any emotion.  
  
It made the redhead stop and turn around at him, giving him a nod before she went off to the dance.  
  
He was about to drive away when he noticed Jonathan's car parked in the parking lot and he drove towards it, noticing that it was empty. He couldn't help myself and he got out of his car, placing a cigarette into his mouth as he walked to one of the windows in the back.  
  
As he walked he noticed another familiar car that belonged to Steve Harrington, who now had his pretty face back and he was looking to the front door of the gym.  
  
The blonde took a drag from his cigarette when he reached the window, his eyes wondering around the place. It was full of kids but it was easy to spot the two taller figures that didn't belong there.  
  
The pretty girl standing by the front door next to the drinks and the brunette boy standing behind the camera. The two shared a smile and Billy found it ironic.  
  
He was standing here, looking at Jonathan, his soulmate, while Steve was a few meters away from him, looking at Nancy.   
  
Billy shook his head and made his way back to his car, not having to pick up Max for another few hours.  
  
Later on Christmas day, the redhead would unwrap her present to find another skateboard there. It looked almost like her old one. She looked up at her step-bother but he only shifted uncomfortably.  
  
He felt like he owed it to her and he hated that feeling.  
  
It took the girl a week and her old skateboard breaking for good until she started using a new one.  
  
The boy also bought Susan a gift. To keep his father calm. He didn't get him anything and that was fine, his father didn't give him anything either. But he sort of liked Susan, he tolerated her.  
  
And so he got her some stupid Christmas ornament that she happily hung up onto the tree. She even looked as if she was going to hug the male but after seeing the look of horror on his face, she decided not to.  
  
Billy didn't expect to get anything for Christmas and he didn't really care. He wasn't very sentimental about those traditions. That was why it surprised him so much when Susan handed him a gift. He carefully opened it and found a new shirt inside. He had thanked her and wore it the next day.  
  
Susan looked pleased and so did his father, Max just looked amused. But he kind of liked the shirt.  
  
He was thinking if he was supposed to get something for Jonathan. He felt as if he is supposed to since he is his soulmate but there was the fact that Jonathan didn't know that and they didn't even talk anymore.  
  
The blonde did eventually decide to give him something. A stupid pen he borrowed from him the first time they sat together which he didn't return since.  
  
He placed it on the desk when the brunette wasn't there, not wanting to face him but he could feel eyes on the back of his neck through the whole class.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You should look up all of the Billy scenes on Youtube for the full picture! ;) 
> 
> Also, I know that in the US they have each their own table in school but in my country we have a desk for two people to sit in at school, so I decided to go with that instead.


	3. Pansy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two abused boys share a bond they didn't ask for. Becoming close and questioning everything.
> 
> ——
> 
> Or: Since Billy isn't getting the redemption in the show, I am giving him one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for continuing this story!

_pansy;_

an insulting word for a man who is weak or easily afraid.  
  
——  
  
The blonde was running down the street, his sneakers digging into the ground below him. He started running and boxing after the incident at the Byers' house. Tommy suggested both of those activities, and Billy had to agree that it was a help for clearing his mind and beating out his anger.  
  
Sometimes he imagined he was hitting someone's face while punching the boxing sack. And sometimes he imagined he was going to somewhere where no one knew him, where he could be alone and do whatever he wanted.  
  
But that was not the case. The boy was running down the street, few days before New Year's Eve, just before the school was supposed to start again. It was cold outside but not that cold, not that Billy would mind anyway. He preferred to be cold, it reminded him how to feel alive again when he was freezing.  
  
He turned left, seeing the park he was heading to in the distance. He was focused on the sounds around him as he ran, getting a bit distracted by every car that drove by. The blonde looked over at the car that was moving beside him, his eyes locked with the driver, and he recognized those brown eyes immediately.  
  
Jonathan seemed to notice him as well since he turned his head a bit to properly look at him and the other boy nodded in greeting. He did not want to talk to him but he did not want to ignore him when the brunette boy was literally staring at him.  
  
So he just nodded in his direction as he kept on running. What he did not expect was that the car would keep on moving right beside him, the window being pulled down. "Did you want something?"  
  
Billy finally stopped when he heard the other boy's voice, seeing that he stopped the car as well, keeping the engine running though. "Why would I want something from you?"  
  
"You nodded at me."  
  
And the blonde could not help but chuckle a bit. "So?"  
  
"Well, you nodded me, I thought you wanted something."  
  
"It was a way of greeting, dumbass."  
  
"Why did you greet me? You have been ignoring me for two months now." The other boy bit back and Billy had to fight back a smirk from forming on his lips.  
  
"Someone has been counting? How adorable." He purred, seeing how the other boy rolled his eyes. "Bye." The brunette called out, pulling the window back up.  
  
The blonde shook his head and turned away from Jonathan, stretching his legs a bit before starting to run again.  
  
He saw that the car started moving again as well and before he was able to stop himself, his eyes wandered to the direction of his soulmate and they locked eyes again before the blonde turned to the left to go to the park to end his usual run routine.  
  
——  
  
He was standing in front of his closet, cleaning out his clothes at Susan's request. Picking an item by item and throwing it on either one pile or another. From the corner of his eye, he could see his door opening, he turned around to find Max standing in front of him.  
  
"Ever heard of knocking? How about being polite?" He raised an eyebrow at her, throwing the shirt he had in his hands onto the ground.  
  
"And what do you know about being polite?" The girl rolled her eyes but it didn't sound so harsh. Billy scoffed a laugh and nodded in her direction. "Well?"  
  
He was watching her as she shifted on her feet, her eyes roaming around the room. "Mom took the comics Lucas gave me because I got a bad grade."  
  
"Math?"  
  
The redhead nodded and the other boy took a few steps towards his radio, turning the volume down just a bit before turning around to look at the girl that was currently walking towards his bed.  
  
She looked under it slightly, as if she tried to do it without him noticing but she didn't seem to find what she was looking for and so she straightened back up again. He knew she was looking for the box of comics he owned. He used to keep it under his bed when they were younger but now it was moved to the top shelf in his closet. He didn't open the box for years now.  
  
The boy knew Max used to sneak up to his room and take the box sometimes since he always found it in other position than before. But she stopped when they moved cities and he misplaced the box.  
  
Billy was looking at his step-sister, watching her eyes wonder around the room until he finally reached up, taking the box into his hands. He walked towards her and handed her the box.  
  
The readhead took the box, her eyes finally meeting his and after months, neither of them had any harshness in them. Hers almost showed thankfulness and his almost showed kindness.  
  
The girl was just about to leave when the male spoke again. "I don't read them anymore." He said, telling her to keep them without saying it properly.  
  
She seemed to understand as she nodded slightly and finally gave him a small smile in what seemed like forever.  
  
It raised some feeling of guilt in the boy's stomach and he didn't like it.  
  
——  
  
School became more bearable when he switched seats again. The boy was now sitting with Tommy after him and Carol got into some stupid fight Billy didn't care about. They seemed to have worked it out since they were sucking their faces off in Billy's presence again but the blonde stayed in Carol's former place and the girl didn't seem to mind.  
  
The truth was, the girl Billy was sitting before to escape Jonathan was too annoying for him and sometimes he even regretted changing his seats. He didn't preferably like high school girls anyway. All they did in is opinion was gossip and he found it annoying.  
  
He only tolareted them when he was alone with them and had ways of shutting them up.  
  
That was why he welcomed the change of sitting with Tommy who didn't talk that much about pointless things and if he did, he stopped after the blonde gave him a look that just suggested him telling him 'Shut the fuck up'.  
  
But ever since his teacher annouced they were going to be picking their partners for the new history project out of some hat, he became nervous again.   
  
He was never lucky and he only hoped he wouldn't pick Jonathan's name.  
  
The teacher annouced the names of the teenagers that were going to be picking the names out of the hat and told them to stand in line before he placed the hat down onto his table.  
  
Half of the students were standing in the line and half of the students were sitting down and Billy was in the latter group. He was glad because if he did manage to pick out his soulmate's name, he would have to be the one to approach Jonathan and he didn't want to do that.  
  
His eyes wandered to the male that occupied his mind before moving his gaze onto his friend standing right after him before looking at the rest of the line.  
  
He then watched some girl either called Ashley or Amanda pick out a name, followed by another girl. They both picked some other girl, one of them being Nancy, and they happily walked to their partners.  
  
Next was Jonathan and the blonde was tapping his fingers onto his table almost nervously. The brunette finally took the little paper out of the hat and started slowly unfolding it, taking more time than the ones before him.  
  
That was until Tommy pushed him slightly to pick out his own partner out of the hat, unfolding it quickly and a grin appeared on his face. Billy wondered if he picked Carol but when the other boy looked up and winked at him, the blonde finally calmed down, realizing his friend picked out his name.  
  
He relaxed back into his seat, looking over at Jonathan who finally unfolded his paper at the same time Tommy was brushing past him to walk towards Billy but the blonde's friend stopped in his tracks, snatching the brunette's paper out of his hands and replacing it with his own.  
  
"Carol!" He then called out to the teacher and quickly made his way to his girlfriend, stopping for a second at Billy's table. "Sorry, man. Carol would be unbearable if she had to be with Jonathan." He half whispered to him before contiuning to the girl.  
  
Billy only glared at him, his eye almost twitching before his gaze fixed onto the brunette that was now showing the paper to the teacher, looking up at the blonde and their eyes met again. It felt almost uncomfortable to the blonde and he looked away.  
  
He knew Jonathan was currently walking towards him but he didn't pay attention to him until he was sat next to him. Only then the blonde turned his head around to look at him.  
  
"Should I just nod? Now that you know what it means?"  
  
"Hey." The brunette replied instead, clearly ignoring the boy's comment.  
  
The blonde nodded in his direction, ignoring the other boy's words as well. He was rewarded with a roll of eyes and his hand was smacked away from Jonathan's side of the table. The corners of his lips flew up at that actions.  
  
"Someone isn't in the mood."  
  
"I hope you are talking about yourself." The other boy bit back, leaning into his seat before he spoke again. "What city do you want?"  
  
"What? I don't care." The blonde replied immediately, his gaze flickering between the teacher and the boy sitting next to him. "What is this supposed to be even about?"  
  
"Have you not been paying attention?"  
  
"Don't be a smartass."  
  
Jonathan chuckled softly before crossing his arms. "After you pick a city, you are supposed to do a project about it. Preferably visit the city ourselves to see it and take pictures."  
  
"Take pictures, of course." Billy scoffed a laugh, finally turning away from Jonathan to look at the teacher who was currently writing the city names on the board.  
  
"Who wants Nashville?" Was called out and the blonde's eyes roamed around the room to see that no one was raising their hand. He then looked over at Jonathan who just shrugged and so Billy raised his hand.  
  
——  
  
The two boys didn't talk much after that since Billy didn't really seem interested to talk to Jonathan. But they did agree they are going to meet up on Thursday to plan their trip to Nashville over the weekend.  
  
Part of the blonde was excited but part of him was scared. He had always wanted to have a soulmate and now he got to spend time with his own, but Jonathan shut him out years ago. And from what Billy could gather, they didn't even have similar personalities.  
  
Jonathan seemed kind yet sassy, creative, introverted but nice in general.  
  
But Billy was complicated, edgy, sharp and loud with short temper.  
  
The blue eyed male was leaning against his car in another one of the afternoons where he waited for his step-sister.   
  
But this time he didn't ignore everyone around him, this time he was studying his surroundings. He saw a bunch of girls standing next to their cars, probably gossiping about someone. He saw Tommy and the boys laughing about something at the other end of the parking lot. He saw Jonathan and Nancy standing around with Max's friends.  
  
And he watched Max say something to her friends, probably a goodbye since she then turned around and started walking towards him.  
  
He didn't miss the small smile Max and Jonathan shared after he waved at her. That was when he noticed everyone was smiling and talking with each other. They all liked each other, they were friends.  
  
Billy then looked over at Tommy and the boys, seeing that they were laughing as well. But they weren't laughing with each other, they were laughing at each other.  
  
It made the boy shift uncomfortably and take a long drag of his cigarette, looking down at his boots as he waited for his step-sister to approach him.  
  
He looked up when he could hear her 'Hey' and he nodded in her direction, throwing his cigarette onto the ground before entering the car, soon followed by his sister.  
  
They stayed quiet during the ride but even thought Billy was a bit lost in his thoughts, he could see something was bothering the girl. He didn't ask though, she told him to leave her alone and so he did.   
  
——  
  
The boy had just finished showering, walking over to his room, he noticed Susan was still sitting on the couch with no Neil to be found around. It made him stop for a second and look at the woman on the couch, watching some TV program she liked.  
  
Him and Susan actually communicated with each other more after the exchange of gifts they had on Christmas. She once asked him what he would like for dinner. He once asked her if she needed something when he went to the mall. And sometimes they exchanged greetings.  
  
And him and his father just kind of ignored each other now. Billy avoided him on any opportunity and the older man didn't seem to mind. He did sometimes march into his son's room to look for a way to shout at him, to release his frustration caused by his work. Or that was Billy's guess anyway. But it wasn't as bad as usual. The blonde boy didn't know how long it would last, but he hoped it would be at least a while.  
  
"Goodnight, Susan." He then said, looking down at the woman as he passed her on his way to his room. The surprised warm smile on her face felt very familiar to his mother's and he gave her a small one in return before realizing what was happening. "Goodnight, Billy."  
  
The blonde then continued to his room, opening the door and turning on the light switch. He then almost jumped up when he saw Max sitting on his bed. He thought she was sleeping, it was pretty late. But he noticed she looked almost upset and he didn't know what to do.  
  
The boy closed the door behind him and leaned against them, running one of his hands through his hair. "What's up, Red?" He started, his voice sounding the softest in his life. He wasn't good at handling situations like this. He had no idea what to do and so he chose to sound like his mother used to when she talked to him during the times he was upset.  
  
"You haven't called me Red in years." The girl said and the sound of her voice was so weird and unsual for Billy, he thought his ears might be bleeding.  
  
He then walked hesitatingly towards the redhead sitting on his bed, sitting down onto the bed but keeping a good amount of space between them. "Well?"  
  
Max stayed quit for a little while, playing with her hands before she finally spoke. "I got marked."  
  
"Oh." The boy let out, shifting a bit onto the bed so he could face the girl instead of showing her his side. He thought it might be a better way to talk. "When did it happen?" He asked slowly, not being sure what question to ask first but he decided to go with that one.  
  
"Yesterday but the redness is finally gone now." The redhead said simply, looking over at her step-brother. "I wanted to tell mom, but she would freak out over it and I didn't want her to."  
  
The blonde nodded slightly, understanding Max's process of thoughts. He told his mother immediately but he was way younger when his words appeared. "Why didn't you want to?"  
  
"I only have a word. Not a full sentence." Max spoke more quietly and sad now, it made the boy feel even more uncomfortable since he was at loss of what he is supposed to say.  
  
"That's okay, though." He started, not knowing where what he was saying came from. "It depends on who your soulmate is, you know? They might not care that you only share one-sided bond. Sometimes it doesn't matter. Or you might not even meet your soulmate and just live without them. Who cares?" He shrugged, his words sinking into his own brain.  
  
He wondered if he was telling the truth because he did care that Jonathan shut him out those years ago. He did care that he knew who his soulmate was and his soulmate didn't know. But he also didn't care at the same time, for the exact reasons he just said.  
  
His step-sister stayed silent, her legs hanging from the bed, one of her feet playing with the other.  
  
The boy sighed slightly before speaking again. "I saw you today with your friends. You looked happy as shit. Just don't let the soulmate thing get too into your head." And this time he knew what he was saying was the truth because he truly didn't want her to think about it too much. When he was the same age as her, it was the exact time when he worried about his soulmate the most, and it started the never ending circle of him being angry.  
  
"The word is so stupid though." The redhead spat out, looking more relaxed than she did a minute ago.  
  
"If it's tubular then just cut it off." He mocked her without any harshness, just pure playfulness.  
  
The girl actually laughed softly before she shook her head. "Do you want-" She started more seriously before stopping herself. "Can I even show it to you?"  
  
"You shouldn't really show it around, but you can show me. I got a sentence anyway, so I am not your soulmate." Billy simply replied, cringing at the possibility of him being his step-sister's soulmate who had the same reaction as him.  
  
The girl then turned around so now her back was facing the male. She was hesitating and he could tell. He didn't blame her. He found it hard to show his words to other people as well. Only his parents saw them. It felt too intimate.  
  
She did eventually pull down her shirt a bit, revealing her shoulder-blade and the word written on her skin. "Righteous?" He scoffed. "What kind of a word is that?"  
  
"Don't ask me, it's so stupid. I don't want to have a slang word carved into my body for my whole life." The girl flopped onto the bed, crossing her arms dramatically.  
  
"It's kinda cool." The male admitted, slightly poking her into her legs that were stretched out on his bed. It was as if they were back in time, only a few months into their brother-sister relationship again. They were getting along in the first couple of months before they both started dealing with their own lives their own way.  
  
"What are your words?" Max asked carefully, eyeing the boy sitting next to her. He knew she was going to ask and he wasn't sure he was going to show them to her. But looking down at her, looking relaxed in his presence again after so long. It made him feel so incredibly shitty he felt as if he was going to cry. He didn't like those new feelings and finding out he was even possible of feeling them.  
  
He did eventually lift himself up a bit, leaning on his elbow and using his other hand to pull down his sweatpants a bit on his side, showing her the words that marked his skin.   
  
**'I was created to create.'**  
  
"Yours is so much cooler." She eventually said and the blonde formed some type of a grin on his face. "Have you found your soulmate yet?" She then asked and the boy's breath got caught in his throat. Now that was something he wasn't ready to tell anybody.  
  
"That's none of your business, Red." He replied, poking her again to make her get up. "Go to bed."  
  
"So you have! Who is it? Do I know them?" The redhead wasn't easy to fool and she understood immediately that he had already found his soulmate.  
  
The blue eyed boy groaned in frustration, his hand raising up to rub his forehead. "Enough chit chat, Max. I am serious." He spoke with a stronger voice but he made sure it didn't sound too harsh. Just enough to make her stop.  
  
The girl understood once again since she gave him a small nod and stood up, making her way to the door where she stopped and turned around to look at him once again. "Thanks for being tolerable for once."  
  
Billy gave her the middle finger but the corners of his mouth failed him, showing the hint of a smile forming on his lips.  
  
——  
  
The blue eyed male parked his car in front of the familiar house and stepped out, noticing the amout of bikes and two familiar cars around. His sister had asked him yesterday if he can pick her up from the Wheeler's house, but he didn't know their whole gang would be there.  
  
He straightened his jacket and walked towards the door, pressing the door bell just once. He was wondering if it would be Mrs. Wheeler to open again or someone else. He just hoped it wouldn't be Steve or Lucas, he would even prefer Nancy over them. And he was one hundred procent sure the girl hated him or something.  
  
To his pleasant surprise it was once again the woman who opened the door, a familiar smile spreading across her features, soon followed by Billy's own. "Hello, there."  
  
"Hi." The woman replied and his eyes quickly looked her up and down. She was fully dressed now but her blouse was nicely showing her clevage. Perhaps she has been expecting him.  
  
"This time I am not looking for her, just picking her up." He said in a low, joking voice, leaning against the door frame and earning a chuckle from the other woman.  
  
"They are still downstairs, playing their little game but I am sure they will be done soon. Please, do come in." The woman said, stepping aside to let the blonde in.   
  
He walked inside, following her to the kitchen and noticing that everything in their house still looked the same. "I don't know how you deal with so many children in your house, Mrs. Wheeler. It must be exhausting." He spoke, leaning against the kitchen counter as he looked over at the female in front of him.  
  
"Karen, please. Just, Karen." She spoke, the soft smile almost never leaving her face as she walked back towards the oven to turn it on. He must have disturbed her during cooking dinner. "It is exhausting sometimes, I have to admit." The woman then said, looking over her shoulder at the blonde who was watching her.  
  
Billy then proceeded to take off his jacket, placing it onto the counter he was leaning onto just a second ago before rolling up his sleeves. "Would you like any help?" He asked, already walking around the kitchen counter.  
  
He had noticed both times that Mr. Wheeler was nowhere to be seen when he was there. He must have been doing anything else but paying attention to his wife. Billy also noticed how the female's eyes lit up each time he subtly flirted with her. He thought it made her feel young and wanted again. And he decided it was fun, so why stop now? Plus she was very good looking in his opinion, he wouldn't mind if someday she would let him make her feel properly wanted.  
  
The woman's eyes filled with surprise and her smile widened for a moment before she quickly shook her head. "Oh, I wouldn't want to bother you." She spoke, but the hint of a smile on her face showed she was warmed by his question.  
  
"No bother here, Karen." He said her first name slowly, sounding as smug as he could before stepping right beside her to look at what she was cooking. It looked like some chicken with potatoes and vegetables. _Easy_. "I am happy to help. Just tell me what you want me to do." He made sure to add just a little more flirtation to his last sentence and he was almost positive he noticed a small blush spreading across the woman's neck.  
  
She did eventually hand him the knife and asked him to chop the vegetables while she prepared the rest. They were standing side by side, his shoulder sometimes brushing her own when he reached for a carrot or a tomato, his fingers brushing against her own when she asked him to hand her the salt on the side he was standing closer to.  
  
He had asked her about her day, about what she was cooking, about how often the kids host their little games. She had asked him about his day as well, about how he found his sister and they settled into their own atmosphere filled with tension that the blonde enjoyed.  
  
He was almost finished with cutting every piece of vegetable when he heard footsteps, many footsteps and another small grin appeared on his face when he could hear both Max's and Jonathan's voices. The kitchen was suddenly filled with numberous of people and when Billy finally looked over his shoulder he could see every single member of their little gang he so often saw in the school. There was a girl he never saw before but he didn't pay much attention to her.  
  
The blonde enjoyed seeing the looks of confusion on each face and he turned the knife in his hand, using the other side to slide the vegetables into the bowl he was holding before putting both of the things down. "You done?" He had asked, looking straight at his step-sister who nodded and it seemed as if she was holding back a chuckle.  
  
The boy then wiped his hands into his jeans and walked around the corner to pick up his jacket, taking it into his hands before turning around to look at the woman again, giving her another one of his best smiles. "See you around, Karen." He purred out, earning a smile from the other woman and he walked towards the door, brushing past Jonathan and Steve as he did so.  
  
He was ignoring everyone else around him but he did look at Jonathan who looked almost suspicious and Billy almost laughed. He heard his step-sister say her goodbyes and he knew she was following him when he opened the door and made his way properly out.  
  
"Please, tell me Mike's mom is not your soulmate." The redhead said as soon as she closed the door behind her and the boy finally released the laugh he was holding in. "Who knows?" He then said, wiggling his eyebrows at the girl who groaned dramatically and opened the door to the car to get in.  
  
Billy followed her actions but he stopped when a very well known male's voice called out for him. "Yes?" He replied, looking back at the house, he saw Jonathan standing in front of the now opened door.  
  
"Are we still meeting up later to discuss tomorrow?"  
  
They did earlier agreed to meet up later today to go over their little trip but Billy thought it was pointless. He didn't want to deal with Jonathan tonight. "We can just talk it out in school tomorrow." He replied before sliding into his car, reaching for his cigarettes.  
  
"What is happening tomorrow?" He heard coming from the girl beside him as he lighted his cigarette, taking a drag from it.  
  
"Good news, shitbird. You will have Friday and Saturday only to yourself. I will be in Nashville."  
  
Her surprised face didn't go unnoticed by the boy nor did her grin that appeared on her face a second later. The boy just rolled his eyes and started the car.  
  
——  
  
The two boys then did talk for a while during one of the breaks. They agreed to meet up at 5pm, so they would still have time to prepare for their little trip but still have time to drive without it being completely dark. It was a four hours long drive so it wasn't that bad.  
  
And after a bit of hesitating, the blonde agreed to pick up the brunette from his house since he refused to go with Jonathan's car. Jonathan protested for a while but then they compromised by taking Billy's car but taking Jonathan's mix tapes and only those.  
  
The blue eyed boy was currently standing in his room, stuffing the things he needed into his backpack. He kept on listing the items in his mind. _Clothes, toothbrush, wallet, keys, perfume, cigarettes, lighter._ Once he was satisfied he grabbed his bag and went to leave his room.  
  
He then knocked on Max's door to annouce her he was leaving. He originally wanted to wait until Susan and his father get home but they were late and he was supposed to be at Jonathan's in fifteen minutes and so he decided to just leave, telling Max to tell them he was going to be home by tomorrow's evening.  
  
Billy then threw his bag onto the backseat and started his car, putting a cigarette into his mouth immediately. He then started the engine and made his way to the Byer's house, his mind filling with memories of him being there the last time.  
  
It only took him a while to get there, parking his car in front of the house. He turned off the engine and leaned back into his seat, hoping Jonathan has heard the car and he wouldn't have to go inside. He did however wonder what their house looked like at the moment. Last time he was there it was empty, only having creepy drawnings on the walls.  
  
Before he could decide to go look, Jonathan was opening the door and making his way towards the car, a woman who Billy guessed was his mother was standing between the door, eyeing the blonde carefully. He didn't really blame her but he didn't really care anyway.  
  
"You are not late." Was the first thing the brunette said when he got into the car. "Surprised?" The blonde replied, starting the engine. He didn't even properly look at the male sitting next to him. Feeling his presence was enough for him. He knew that once you meet your soulmate, you feel them more closely, more intimate and the image of him sitting next to his soulmate for four hours was haunting.  
  
"Actually, yes. I took your for the two hours late type." The shorter boy replied, putting on his seatbelt, taking his mix tapes and camera out of his bag before placing the bag onto the backseat as well.  
  
"Ouch." The blonde said sarcastically as he drove away from the house. He studied the map while packing his things, he knew where to go but he still reached into his pocket, throwing the map in the direction of Jonathan. "I am making you the guide, pretty boy." He annouced, turning left where he remembered he was supposed to go.  
  
"What an honour." Jonathan replied, unfolding the map before turning his head a bit to the side. "Pretty boy? Really?" He had asked, raising his eyebrows but it was more in a joking matter.  
  
"Sure, have some confidence." The blonde scoffed a laugh, his eyes on the road but he could see Jonathan rolling his eyes from the corner of his blue eyes.  
  
"Have you figured out where we are going to go yet?" The boy had asked instead, putting the map back onto his lap so he could grap his mixtapes.   
  
Billy just shook his head, not even caring what they are going to do in the city, he just wanted to get this over it. He never intended to be spending his weekend with the other boy. He was going to be partying with Tommy, getting drunk and hooking up with some girl. Then going to the gym to punch everything out of himself the next day. That was always his plan for the weekends during the last month.  
  
And so this sudden change felt a bit strange to the blonde.  
  
"We can just decide when we are there? And when we see what interesting is around?" The brunette suggested and he was rewared with a nod from the blue eyed boy. Jonathan then put the first mixtape into the radio, the sounds of the Clash filling the car.  
  
Billy wasn't at all surprised by the other boy's taste of music. He figured he would have nice taste in music. Maybe not the exact same as the blonde but at least similar. He wasn't bothered by what was playing and so the two of them soon fell into somewhat a comfortable silence.  
  
The two of them didn't really speak during their ride to Nashville. Jonathan has asked him to slow down a few times so he could take a picture of something that caught his eye. Billy sometimes started tapping his fingers to the song that was currently playing, followed by Jonathan's bobbing head. Jonathan would take on his role as the guide and tell him where to turn or where to drive next. Billy would light up his cigarette, slightly surprised when the boy next to him said nothing about it and he could enjoy it in peace. The brunette would fall asleep eventually, only to wake up about an hour later when the blonde took sharper turn than intended.  
  
Jonathan would ask him to stop when they were passing a gas station and the brunette went to buy sodas and snacks for both of them, forcing it into Billy's hand with the words 'You are paying for the gas, I can pay for this at least' when the boy protested.  
  
They eventually reached the city they were going to, Jonathan demanding for them to stop at the sign, making Billy stand up next to the sign and he did, but he raised his middle finger the exact moment the brunette was taking the picture and refused to take another.  
  
When they reached the first hotel they found, it was already 10pm and Billy felt tired from all the driving. He also felt kind of relaxed and calm, which was not a feeling he was used to.  
  
But he guessed that four hours of driving his beloved car, listening to music he liked, smoking his cigarettes and feeling the closeness of his soulmate were kind of calming. He didn't mind it as much as he thought he would.  
  
——  
  
To Billy's surprise Jonathan took it upon himself to approach the woman sitting behind the counter of the hotel they decided to stay in. She looked as if she could be in her 40s and bored as hell.  
  
The blonde was holding both of their bags, watching the other boy approach the other woman. A small grin was formed on his face when he noticed Jonathan tapping his fingers against his legs as if he was nervous.  
  
"Do you want a single room for each of you or are you gonna share one?" The woman asked them after the brunette asked for a room.  
  
"Each." Billy said at the same time the boy next to him said 'Share'. He whipped his head around to look at the male standing next to him. "It's going to be cheaper." Jonathan just shrugged, looking at Billy for a second before turning around to look at the woman again. "And we can get a twin room, right?"   
  
"Sure you can." She replied with a smile, doing the paper work she needed to do, giving them the key after they paid for the room, both paying for half.  
  
The two boys walked upstairs of the hotel in silence, Billy playing with the key he was holding and studying the other boy that was avoiding his gaze. The blonde's eyes wandered around the hallway, trying to find their hotel room number, walking towards it when he finally found it.  
  
He unlocked and opened the door, stepping inside as he did so, closing the door with his feet as soon as Jonathan walked in and his blue eyes found the two beds. "So, a twin room, huh?" He said in questioning, kind of mocking voice, throwing his bag onto one of the beds.  
  
He could hear Jonathan stamping around on his feet until he finally spoke. "I am not really used to leaving Hawkins. And when I did, I never slept alone. I don't think I would have a good sleep if I was alone." The brunette replied honestly and Billy was almost shocked that the other boy could be so open with him after such a while.  
  
"Okay." He just said, shrugging off his jacket as he walked towards the window, opening it so he can lit his cigarette and have a smoke.  
  
While Billy was smoking his cigarette, the other boy took it upon himself to take the bathroom and soon after the door closed, the blonde could hear the water running, suggesting that Jonathan is taking a shower.  
  
The boy was leaning against the window and he felt like his head was going to explode.   
  
This whole month was just a new experience to him, he didn't like it. He was forced to tame down his behaviour, he forced himself to do so after his encounter with his step-sister and the baseball bat.   
  
He felt as if he owed everyone everything. As if he owed his step-sister some time without him, as if he owed Susan an apology for not trying to accept her before, as if he owed Jonathan something for not telling him he is his soulmate.  
  
He hated how mixed up his feelings were lately. He was used to just being angry and he liked that, he was used to that. But now the anger was there only sometimes, and new feelings were adding to the anger, making him confused and frustrated.  
  
The blue eyed boy let out a sigh, thinking if he just stayed here, in this hotel, in Nashville, would he became the Billy he used to be? He wouldn't owe anyone anything if there was no one around. The boy actually thought about it before his thoughts stumbled across his father and what could happen to the two redheads back at home if he wasn't around for his father to beat his anger out.  
  
He flicked the cigarette out of his hand, almost feeling anger again once he thought about his father.  
  
The door of the bathroom opened, revealing Jonathan in pyjamas and wet hair and Billy hated how quickly the calmness filled his body. He hated how having his soulmate around was affecting his body. He read about the effects of being close to your soulmate. Feeling calm, carefree, warm, relaxed and eventually loved. He almost crigned at that last one.  
  
"It's free for you to go." The other boy offered, pointing to the bathroom as he flipped onto his own bed, pulling his notebook from the bag.  
  
"Yeah, I can see that, smartass." The blonde snapped at the brunette's comment, not even fully knowing why. He guessed it was the filling frustration inside him. He then headed for the shower, taking his things and already deciding he is going to spend at least ten minutes there, shutting the door behind him as he did so.  
  
When he came back to the room, he noticed that only one lamp was turned on, the rest of the room covered in dark. Jonathan was lying down on his side, looking half asleep already but the blonde could feel his eyes watching him.  
  
Billy then climbed onto his own bed, turning on his side so his back was facing Jonathan's face. He just wanted to fall asleep at this point.  
  
"Thanks for not being weird about this." He then heard the soft voice and he sighed slightly, leaning onto his elbows to turn around a bit and look at the other boy. "About what?"  
  
"Sharing a room with me?"  
  
"Have you never shared a room with a guy? Your friends? Steve?" He scoffed, flipping onto his back since he found the position he was in before uncomfortable.  
  
"Other than my brother? No." The other boy simply said before continuing. "And I don't think me and Steve are at that point in our friendship where we can have sleepovers."  
  
"Why? Because you are fucking his ex? What a surprise." The blonde mocked, not being surprised by this information at all. He did see them all together sometimes. Jonathan, Nancy, Steve and the kids. He wondered how awkward it must have been.  
  
"What? Well, no, I don't..No-" The boy started mumbling and shaking his head a second later. "We were never friends, me and Steve. He was a dick before, kind of like you." Jonathan then finished, looking at the other boy with a straight face but his eyes suggested he was being playfull.   
  
He was rewarded with one of the most cockiest and sarcastic of Billy's smiles and a middle finger. "Thanks, dipshit."  
  
"You know you are actually.." The brunette started speaking again, his soft voice filling the room before he stopped as if he lost his thought.  
  
"If you say not as bad as everyone says you are, I am going to throw you out of the fucking window." The blonde finished for him, turning back onto his side again.  
  
It was quiet for a while before Jonathan wished him a goodnight, Billy doing the same in some type of half growl and a half mumble.  
  
——  
  
The next day the two of them got up quite early, thanks to Jonathan who got up early and started snapping pictures out of the window, waking up the other boy by that action since he was never a heavy sleeper.  
  
They then both used the bathroom quickly and got dressed, taking all their things as they went to return the key of their room. After saying goodbye to the woman behind the counter, the two of them headed to Billy's car, deciding that they are going to get breakfast first and then explore the city.  
  
The boys settled on some diner they found around the corner, Jonathan ordering pancakes with eggs and bacon and Billy ordering the same after thinking about it for a second, earing a winning smile from the brunette which was rewarded by the blonde kicking him under the table.  
  
Jonathan then responded to that by throwing a napkin onto the blonde's face whose eye twitched at that action. "What are we? Five?"  
  
"I don't know, are you?" The photographer replied, earning another soft kick to his leg but this time he chuckled and Billy rolled his eyes, throwing his head backwards.   
  
After they had eaten their food and paid for it, the boys left the blonde's car in the diner's parking lot and decided to explore the city a bit, or at least some places around the diner since they were worried they would get lost.  
  
They walked around for what seemed like hours. They went to the music store where they spent more time that they intended to, Billy allowing Jonathan to show him what music he likes and the blonde guessing and poiting at random discs to annoy Jonathan by asking him each time if he listens to the artist or not.   
  
They went to the mall, Billy making Jonathan buy a new flannel shirt, saying the one he was wearing looked as if he stole it from his grandfather, earning an annoyed groan from the other boy and a punch to his shoulder.  
  
They went to a park, Jonathan wanting to take pictures of the nature and Billy for once didn't protest, he just followed the boy, smoking his cigarette and the brunette managed to take his first proper picture of the blonde without him trying to mess it up.  
  
They ended up by the hot dogs stand, each getting a hot dog and Billy challenging the other boy to an eating contest where Jonathan nearly ended up choking and Billy ended up laughing for a couple of minutes after the boy was okay again, but all red and frustrated.  
  
They didn't talk much as they walked, they only talked if they had something to talk about, such as the music or the clothes. But it seemed as if they didn't have to. It didn't seem as if each of them were much of a talker. And Billy found himself actually enjoying his time, which did not happen often. He enjoyed his time when he was exercising or partying and that was it. But here he was, annoying Jonathan and eating hot dogs and he was enjoying it.  
  
The two of them were walking down the bridge which they guessed lead back to the diner since the boys kind of lost the direction they were going to. Billy was whistling softly as he walked, his hands playing with his lighter as he looked at Jonathan who was looking down onto the road beneath them.  
  
"Wanna race?" The blonde then suggested, nodding to the end of the bridge that was still quite far away.  
  
"You want to lose?" The other boy replied, Billy being both surprised and satisfied by the answer he got. "What? You used to running around, pretty boy?" He scoffed, raising an eyebrow at the boy next to him.  
  
But Jonathan didn't asnwer, he just started running, leaving the blonde who was currently cursing at him behind. Billy didn't hesitate for much longer, he quickly took in the speed and caught up to Jonathan, being right behind him.  
  
The brunette was looking over his shoulder, laughing softly as he ran and somehow Billy found himself laughing along with him as they tried to out race each other.  
  
He was finally laughing with someone. Not at someone.   
  
——  
  
After they managed to finally find the diner, it was already 3pm and the boys grabbed a quick lunch consisting of burgers and fries before finally getting into the car to head back home. Jonathan offered to switch places during the ride with the blonde but after the look he was given that screamed 'If you think I am going to let you drive the only thing that matters to me, you are wrong', he didn't ask again.  
  
And so their journey back home began, being almost the same as before.  
  
Listening to Jonathan's mixtapes, but this time talking about the bands a little. The brunette taking pictures, but this time Billy allowing him to take a picture or two of him behind the steering wheel.   
  
Stopping to get gas, but this time Billy going inside with Jonathan to pick the sodas and snacks for them, mocking Jonathan and smacking his arm away gently when the brunette reached for something 'Fucking disgusting' as the other boy called it.  
  
Jonathan had the map in his hands once again, informing the blonde that they are about twenty minutes away from Hawkins.  
  
"I have to say, this was fun." The brunette then said after leaning back into his car seat, pushing the bangs out of his forehead. "When you were being quiet, it was fun." He then continued, a smirk forming on his face so smiliar to one of Billy's but Jonathan's was playfull and kind.  
  
"Fuck. Off." The blonde chuckled softly, taking a left turn where he was supposed to before allowing himself to reply. "It might have been."  
  
"Might have been what?"  
  
"You know what." Billy wasn't good at expressing his thoughts or feelings but he felt as if it was important to let his soulmate know he had fun as well.  
  
"Fun?" The brunette offered, probably guessing Billy wasn't good at these kind of things. "Mhm." The other boy confirmed, his eyes meeting the brown ones for a second before he turned back to pay attention to the road.  
  
"Maybe if you were like this more often, then you didn't have to hang out only with Tommy, you know." The boy's voice was soft, almost like a whisper and Billy guessed he might have been almost afraid to say those words out loud.  
  
He gripped onto the wheel, feeling himself fill up with frustration again. "Sorry to disappoint, princess, but I am not Steve."  
  
"I didn't say that." The brunette quickly defended himself. "But you thought it." The blonde immediately replied back.  
  
"Listen, all I am saying is that you are not such a dick. Not unless you want to be."  
  
"Oh, so now you know me, huh?" Billy mocked, tapping his fingers onto the wheel and running his tongue over his bottom lip. He hated when someone just thought they got him all figured out.  
  
"No, I don't but if you would stop being a dick, I might even want to get to know you."  
  
"And what makes you think I want to get to know you?" The driver scoffed again, not looking at the other boy but he saw him moving around from the corner of his eye, he figured he was running a hand through his hair.  
  
"Maybe the fact you were quite nice during those two days?" Jonathan almost called out, dropping his hands onto his lap.  
  
"Tolerable. Not nice. I wanted to finish the project, not to find friends." He spat out, throwing the last word at the other boy as almost an insult.  
  
"Why are you being so defensive? I literally haven't done anything to you." Billy thought he might have heard a hint of anger in the other boy's voice and it almost made him feel accomplished since he hasn't seen Jonathan angry.  
  
"You are talking. That's enough."  
  
"And you are being a dick again."  
  
 **"Someone has to pop your fairytale bubble.** " The blonde rolled his eyes, taking another turn and his eyes gazing at Jonathan in that process, noticing he has gone quiet.  
  
"Stop the car." There was a cold whisper and Billy whipped his head around and found Jonathan looking paler than usual. "What? Why?"  
  
"Stop the car." The brunette repeated, holding onto the door handle as he breathed heavily.  
  
"The fuck, man? Are you sick?"  
  
"Just stop the car!" The boy yelled out, already unfastening his seat belt as Billy stopped the car, parking it to the side of the road and watching Jonathan get out of the car.  
  
He soon followed after him, finding the boy kicking into the car wheel, running his hand through his hair frustratedly before his hand landed on his hip, squeezing it and it looked almost painfull to the other boy.  
  
"What the fuck?" He said, standing just a few feet away from the other boy, his eyes watching his hand on his hip, the knuckles were turning white at how much strength the brunette was using. "Hey, man." The blonde called out, reaching out to shake with the boy's shoulder but as soon as he touched it, his hand came flying back by the electricity shock he got from the touch.  
  
And looking over to see Jonathan's shocked face, it meant exactly what he thought it meant. He had said Jonathan's words. They both said each other's words and now there was a proper connection between them.  
  
"Oh, fuck." Billy eventually said, stepping away from the boy to lean against his car.  
  
"What? What do you mean by that?" The other boy finally spoke again, now pointing at the blonde angrily.  
  
He didn't say anything, just searched his pockets for his cigarettes and lighter.  
  
Jonathan stepped closer to him, his face was showing so many emotions it made Billy want to vomit. He felt his closeness so much he hated it. He felt it before but now that the connection was properly completed, it doubled the feeling.  
  
"Did you know?" The brunette started, his eyes boring into the blonde who just shifted uncomfortably. "You knew. You knew!"  
  
"Alright, calm down, Jesus." He groaned, finally lighting his cigarette.  
  
"Calm down? How do you expect me to calm down!" The boy called out, throwing his arms around. "You just said my words!"  
  
"Yeah, no shit." The blonde rolled his eyes, his ears were ringing and all he wanted to do was go home at this point.  
  
The boy in front of him went silent for a while before his breathing started to quicken again. "I said your words when we sat together, didn't I? That's why you started ignoring me. You knew all along!" He was freaking out again and Billy wanted to bash his own skull open.  
  
"Show me." Jonathan then said, stepping closer to the boy. "You probably have it at the same place, huh? Don't you!" He started to freak out the blonde now since Jonathan's face looked blank and his voice sounded crazy. The brunette went to grab onto the other boy's shirt but he smacked his hands away. "Let me see!"  
  
The brown eyed boy then made another try to get a look at Billy's marked skin but the taller boy grabbed onto his wrist, his cigarette falling to the ground in the process and his face flinching at the contact with the other boy. He felt everything so strongly his head was spinning.  
  
"What is wrong with you?" He then spat out, pushing Jonathan away from himself, just enough to make him take a step back but not fall down.  
  
"Oh! What is wrong with me? What the fuck do you think? After years of avoiding my soulmate, you turn out to be my soulmate!"  
  
Billy flinched at those words, his hands started shaking as Jonathan's voice kept on repeating itself inside his head. "You think I want to be your fucking soulmate!" He yelled out to the other boy, all the anger he was holding down for the past month was slowly but surely bubbling up.  
  
"You think I want to be your soulmate? You think I want some pansy to be my soulmate?!" The brunette called out, pointing to the blonde leaning against the car.  
  
Somehow, all the anger seemed to flush back down. His hands stopped trembling, his face went black and he felt, sad. He felt sad after reliving all the memories of his soulmate not speaking to him, he felt sad after finally finding his soulmate and his soulmate not wanting him, he felt sad after his soulmate, Jonathan, had told him he spent years avoiding him and didn't want him to be his soulmate.  
  
He was looking down as he pushed himself away from the car, opening the door to grab onto Jonathan's backpack, throwing it at him a second later. "Billy.."  
  
He almost stopped after realizing the boy's voice sounded soft again but he didn't, he quickly moved around the car to get into the driver's seat and started the engine. Only then he finally spared a look at the boy standing next to the road.   
  
"Fuck you." He then said and drove away without another word or a look.


	4. Cliche

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two abused boys share a bond they didn't ask for. Becoming close and questioning everything.
> 
> ——
> 
> Or: Since Billy isn't getting the redemption in the show, I am giving him one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for continuing this story!

_  
  
cliche;_  
  
something that has been overdone to the point where it becomes lame, predictable and obsolete.  
  
——  
  
The blonde's fists were hitting the boxing sack, the coldness of the material meeting the warmth coming from his fingers. His fingers getting more red and sensitive each time they hit the sack which made the blonde punch harder and harder the next time. He wanted to feel the pain, wanted to feel something, wanted for his anger to get a release.  
  
That was why he spent two hours in the gym, choosing not to wear any gloves so by the time he was finished, his knuckles would be tear open, bloody and painfull. He didn't know what else to do to beat his anger out.  
  
Jonathan's words were replaying all over and over again, his father's angered expressions and disappointment showing up in his mind. Max's eyes filled with sadness and anger kept on showing and the boy hit the sack harder than intended.  
  
He took a step back, leaning his forehead against the boxing sack as he flexed his fingers, breathing heavily. He looked down at his hands, looking over his busted knuckles. He used to have his knuckles always busted open and bloody, it was almost his trademark back in California.  
  
Cigarette in his mouth, necklace showing against his bare chest, his shirt opened up with a jacket thrown over it. His knuckles bloody and beaten, his boots sounding heavy as they hit the ground.  
  
He leaned his right hand against the boxing sack, pushing himself away from it to wipe off his sweaty forehead.  
  
"Aren't you supposed to wear gloves?" The blonde turned his around and his eyes found his soulmate standing just a few meters away from him, leaning against the door frame with hands in his pockets. He looked nervous.  
  
Billy narrowed his eyes, walking over to a bench that was few feet away from him, grabbing his towel and a bottle of water. He threw the towel over his shoulder, opening the bottle to take a sip from it.  
  
"You weren't in school." The brunette continued, pushing himself off the door frame to walk towards the blonde. "No shit." Was the reply he got after Billy swallowed the water in his mouth.   
  
"I wanted to talk to you."  
  
"No, thanks."  
  
"Well, I am going to." The blonde raised his eyebrow at the other boy, closing the water bottle, he took the towel into his hands, wipping his forehead to get the sweat away from his face. He then turned away to go to the changing room, ignoring Jonathan completely.  
  
Billy heard footsteps behind him, suggesting that the brunette was following him. _Of course he is._   
  
"I freaked out yesterday. It was so out of nowhere it took me by surprise. I didn't intend to react like that." Jonathan started talking, swinging his arms nervously.  
  
The other boy still stayed quiet, taking the key from the locker out of his shoe to unlock it, throwing his towel onto a bench next to the locker, he still didn't say a thing.  
  
"It is true that I spent years avoiding my soulmate, you know that." The brunette spoke again, sounding more quiet now. "I didn't want a boy to be my soulmate, my dad hated the thought of that." This sentence made Billy stop his movements for a little before he threw his shirt over his head. "Why?" The blonde finally spoke.  
  
"Because he didn't think soulmates can be platonic. Just romantic. So that meant I had to be a fag."Jonathan spoke harshly and honestly, it made the blonde flinch a bit. He wasn't used to this.  
  
"So what? Your daddy didn't allow you to talk to me so you wouldn't be a fag? Well, maybe you could have fucking told me that." Billy spat out, taking off his shoes, throwing them into his gym bag.  
  
"I thought if I didn't talk to you, it meant that we wouldn't meet."   
  
"Surprise, smartass. We did."  
  
"I know. That is why I want to get to know you." Jonathan's voice filled the room again and Billy could see him stepping closer.  
  
"I would rather die. But thanks." The blonde said, taking off his socks in a quick motion to throw them into the bag as well.  
  
The brunette was rolling his eyes before he spoke again. "Like it or not, we are soulmates. And it is a known fact a soulmate's life is better when they have their own soulmate in their lives."  
  
"That's adorable." The blue eyed boy replied sarcastically, reaching into the locker to put on his necklace.  
  
"I am not going to beg you. But can't you just give it a try?" Jonathan sounded more harsh now, there was a bit of hopefullness in his voice and it sent shivers down the blonde's back.  
  
"Try what exactly? What do you want?" Billy asked, pulling down his shorts, leaving him only in his briefs by that action.  
  
"Being friends."  
  
The blonde looked over the boy standing next to him, watching him carefully. After his outburst the other day, he really didn't expect Jonathan to be going to him, asking to be friends. A part of him wanted to tell the brunette to go to hell and never talk to him again but a part of him wanted to maybe give a try.  
  
"Tommy is throwing a party tomorrow. That's where I hang out with my friends." He just simply said, reaching into the locker for his shower gel and another towel.  
  
"On Monday?" The brunette started speaking, stopping only after seeing Billy's amused expression. "Yeah, I am not surprised." He then finished and the blonde watched him furrow his brows.  
  
Billy didn't want to talk with Jonathan anymore, he gave him a chance by inviting him to the party. Kind of. But that was it, he didn't want to chit chat with the boy. He hooked his thumbs behind his briefs and raised an eyebrow at Jonathan. "You staying for the show or?"  
  
The other boy just blinked and quickly turned around, shaking his head as he turned to leave the changing room. The blonde expected him to say something and for a moment, Jonathan did look like he was going to say something but then he just left and Billy finally let out a deep breath before he made his own way to the showers.  
  
——  
  
The next day Billy was standing in front of his car, waiting for Max to get out of the house so they can get to school. Not that he was looking forward to go school but he didn't want to stay at home any longer that he had to either.  
  
The redhead finally appeared in the door and the boy threw away the cigarette he was smoking and got into the car, soon followed by the girl.  
  
He started the car, driving away from the house as he turned on the radio, preparing for another silent ride but this time his step-sister surprised him as she started to speak. "So did Jonathan find you yesterday?"  
  
"What?" He asked in disbelief, turning his head over to look at her. Now that he thought about it, he wondered how his soulmate found him. "He called and looked for you, I told him you were at the gym." The redhead replied and he could feel her eyes on himself.  
  
"Mhm." He just muttered, turning left where he was supposed to in order to get to the school. "So your trip went well then?" The girl kept on pressing the subject and he started to tap his fingers against the steering wheel as he drove.  
  
The blonde just turned to look at her, watching her for a little while as he ran his tongue against his lips, tasting the cigarette he was smoking earlier on them. "You found your soulmate yet?" He changed the topic instead.  
  
"None of your business." The girl replied, using the line the boy so often used. It made him chuckle a bit and turn the volume on the radio up a bit more, telling her by this gesture that this is the end of their conversation.  
  
The rest of the ride was filled with silence from both of them, the sounds of Metallica filling the car instead. He was fine with that since his mind has been running all over the place once again.  
  
He kept on asking myself numerous questions. _Why does Jonathan want to be friends with him? Why does he want to get to know him now when he shut him out years ago? Why does he even try to talk to him when he must have heard many not flattering things from Steve and the kids?_  
  
Billy didn't like what was going on. He dealt with his soulmate not wanting him in his life years ago and now that he found him, he thought avoiding and ignoring would be for the best. What he didn't think about was Jonathan finding out about them being soulmates and wanting to get closer with each other.  
  
He knew that it's known your life is better when your soulmate is around you but he didn't like the feeling of being forced into something. And he knew Jonathan wasn't forcing him into anything, but it felt like it.  
  
The blonde didn't even notice he was frowning as he parked the car and got out, slamming the door behind him more harshly than intented. That sound made him snap back into reality and he turned his head slightly to watch Max skate away.  
  
He then relaxed his shoulders, straightening his jacket before looking around the parking lot. His eyes found Tommy and his group immediately before his gaze wandered around, seeing Jonathan and Nancy waving over at Steve, telling him to come over to them.  
  
Billy remembered he had a basketball practise later today and he debated whetever to annoy Steve about being the third wheel or not. He sucked onto his bottom lip as he threw his thoughts away for the moment being and walked over to Tommy.  
  
Later at the practise Billy eyed Steve, watching him play and he noticed he played better than before, he wondered if it was because he kept on pushing him or if Steve just didn't realize and played better than usual.  
  
The blonde went to take the ball, catching it as soon as one of his team mates threw it his way and dribbling it over to the other team's basket. He made sure to go to the left so Steve was the one supposed to be blocking him.  
  
"I noticed you are playing better, Harrington." He spoke, dribbling the ball as he looked at the boy in front of him who watched him but said nothing so far.  
  
"The anger of being the third wheel getting to you?" He mocked, hearing Tommy laugh behind him. The blonde then went to go for the basket and Steve tried to block him but Billy pushed him slightly away, using less force than usual.  
  
He could hear footsteps shifting behind him, meaning that Steve was going for another try but the blonde threw the ball which landed in the basket perfectly.  
  
"How's your neck?" He could hear behind him and he turned away, watching Steve flex his muscles. The blonde could only narrow his eyes, his tongue running through his teeth. "How's your face?" He bit back, walking backwards to his own team, his eyes never leaving the other boy until he heard Tommy next to his ear and he finally turned around.  
  
The game went as usual, Billy's team won but Steve's was only a few points behind, which was a good sign for them. The shower went also as usual, the boys smacking each others with towels, throwing clothes at each other and making unfunny childish jokes.  
  
Billy ignored most of them, got showered and changed as one of the first boys, walking out of the gym he looked over at the parking lot. He could see his soulmate sitting on the hood of his car. He knew he was waiting for Nancy. The blonde noticed the two of them sometimes ate their lunch there, on Jonathan's car.  
  
He found it quite strange.  
  
——  
  
That night Billy parked his car in front of Tommy's house, getting out with a cigarette in his hand, he looked around and noticed plenty of people were already in here. He came by a bit later than he intented to but he wanted to see what would happen if Jonathan did come and if he was here before the blonde.  
  
But so far the brunette was nowhere to be found and so Billy took a drag from his cigarette and walked towards the house. Looking from left to right, he saw some people standing outside and spotted a few familiar faces but mostly unfamiliar. He didn't really pay much attention to the people in school, he didn't care about them.  
  
He eventually reached the front door, opening it with ease as he walked inside, the cigarette still in his mouth. His eyes found the boys immediately, standing in the corner around a ping pong table, playing beer pong. The blonde started walking towards them, his eyes travelling around the place to find drunk teenagers making out, dancing, drinking. The usual.  
  
When he reached his group, Tommy turned to greet him immediately, patting his shoulder quickly before handing him a beer. It looked like it was a reflex from the other boy's side. Billy welcomed it and he took the beer with a nod, opening it and taking a sip. He then nodded at the other boys and cheered his beer with them.  
  
They were playing beer pong and since they were already in teams, Billy just leaned against the wall and watched them. Tommy offered him to join his team but the blonde just said he would join for the next game.  
  
Looking down at the beer can, he brought it back to his lips as his eyes looked up again, searching to room to see if the photographer came. When his eyes found nothing, he just downed the beer in one go and threw the can away to the already building pile.  
  
He pushed himself off the wall to make his way to the kitchen, wanting to find something else than beer. The blonde loved parties and he loved drinking but he didn't love when drunk people annoyed him. He liked it when they cheered him, drank with him or danced with him but not when they talked to him or even breathed in any annoying way.   
  
That was why he tried to avoid any contact with every possible person until he finally reached the kitchen, searching the cabinets immediately. He didn't have to search for long since his eyes found an already opened and half drank bottle of whiskey standing on the counter.  
  
He grabbed it, taking a small sip to find out the taste and get used to it. It wasn't bad. And so he took the bottle and started walking back to the living room. He almost reached the boys when he looked around the room again and his gaze fixed onto the nervously looking brunette that just entered the house.  
  
A smirk made its way onto Billy's face as he took another sip of the whiskey.  
  
——  
  
He stayed standing in that exact position. A smirk on his face, a bottle of whiskey in his hand, his other hand hooked at the waistband of his jeans and his eyes watching the brunette. He wanted to watch him go through the crowd of drunk teenagers to approach him. After all, he was the one who wanted to be friends.  
  
The brown eyes finally met the blue one's and the blonde watched Jonathan's movements as he tried to avoid touching people while making his way towards the taller boy. Billy chuckled slightly as he eyed him.  
  
"Hey." The brunette finally said when he reached Billy who just raised the bottle in Jonathan's way instead of a greeting. He was reward with a shake of head. "I drove here, I am not drinking."  
  
"Who goes to a party with the intention of not drinking?" The blonde's eyebrows furrowed as he looked all over Jonathan, he looked the same as he did in school. He would lie if he said he expected him to dress up for the party like everyone else did.  
  
"Me." Jonathan just shrugged slightly, raising his hands as his eyes went wide in a mocking matter. "Arrest me for it."  
  
Billy just gripped onto the other boy's shoulder, almost flinching at the touch when the waves of closeness to being next to his soulmate hit him, but he stood his ground and walked over to the boys, dragging Jonathan along.  
  
"Start a new game, boys. And we are joining." He said, sounding a bit harsh but he noticed earlier that he always spoke with a stronger voice to his group of friends. It made him sound more like a leader.  
  
"Holy shit, Byers? What are you doing here?"  
  
"Oh, look who is here!"  
  
"Byers!  
  
"The creep is here!"  
  
The voices of th eboys filled the drunken atmosphere and Billy's head almost started to hurt at how annoying he found it. "Enough." He said harshly, looking all over his group who went quiet again at his command.  
  
He sneaked a glance at Jonathan who just stood there, looking as if he wanted to be anywhere but there. "Just make the teams for fuck's sake." The blonde then said, watching the boys that started to huddle up, deciding who is going to be with who. He then turned over to properly look at Jonathan, taking another sip from the whiskey before he started talking again. "You ever played beer pong before?"  
  
Jonathan shook is head and the blonde wasn't surprised by this information at all. "But it can't be that hard, can it?"  
  
"You just have to throw a ball into a cup." Billy scoffed a laugh, eyeing the boy in front of him. "If you think you can manage to do that, pretty boy." He mocked the male who just raised his eyebrows.  
  
"Just watch me." He then said, making the corners of the blonde's lips raise up a little as he put the whiskey down on the nearest table to get ready for the game.  
  
Jonathan turned to be actually good at beer pong. Billy called it beginner's luck but Jonathan called it hidden talent. They would switch, taking turns with different teams and try to win as many rounds as possible. Each time a ball would end up in their cup, Billy would have to be the one to drink the alcohol since even after many attemps, the brunette still refused to drink, saying he has to watch over his brother tomorrow.   
  
And so Billy drank all of it and after they finished the third round, he started to feel a little bit dizzy. He was used to being tipsy so he didn't mind but he did mind how the music got louder in his head and how the room became more heated and crowded.  
  
His eyes found Jonathan's and he saw a hint of worry in the brown eyes. It sent a shiver down Billy's spine and he started walking towards the front door, wanting to get away from the crowd for a moment. He didn't like indoor parties. He preffered outdoor ones, he was used to those back in California.  
  
The blonde continued walking outside, turning his head a bit to look behind him, he saw Jonathan following him. It made him roll his eyes. "Can't leave me alone for five minutes?"  
  
"You dragged me to this party, I am not staying there with freaking Tommy."   
  
"I dragged you? I don't think it went like that, pretty boy." He raised an eyebrow in Jonathan's direction, searching his pockets for his cigarettes.  
  
"Made me come here." Jonathan tried again, earning another mocking expression from the blonde. "Whatever helps you sleep at night." He then said, bringing the cigarette to his lips and lighting it, taking a deep drag immediately.  
  
He then went to offer one of the cigarettes to Jonathan who shook his head. "He doesn't drink. He doesn't smoke. What does he do?" The blonde questioned, watching Jonathan move towards his car. He followed him, not being sure if Jonathan was leaving or not.  
  
"He takes pictures." The brunette said, unlocking his car he reached into the backseat to grab his camera and Billy couldn't help but chuckle. "Of course you would bring a camera to a party."  
  
The boy with the camera then proceeded to wander around the house, taking a picture of the cars parked in front of the house, taking a picture of the forest next to the house, taking a picture of the lights put in front of the house.  
  
Billy followed him everytime he changed his direction, finding out that watching a photographer work was quite fascinating. He eventually sat down on the ground, his eyes still watching Jonathan who was now lurking all around him.  
  
The blonde threw away his cigarette and went to wipe the leftover from the beer away from his mouth, the camera snapping in the exact moment and he looked up, seeing that Jonathan was pointing the camera right at him.  
  
"You have a lot of rings." The photograper then pointed out, nodding to Billy's hand and the blonde looked down at his own hands. He liked rings and each of his rings had his own little story, he liked that. And he knew the girls liked it, finding it attractive.  
  
"Sure do."  
  
Jonathan took a few steps towards the sitting boy, letting himself sink down next to him as he put the camera into his lap. "I thought it would be worse."  
  
"What?"  
  
"The party." The brunette said, turning his head a bit to the side so he was now facing the other male.  
  
"Night is still young."  
  
The brown eyed boy just shook his head slightly at the reply that was given to him, letting himself shake a bit with a chuckle before changing the subject. "Where did you get your rings?"  
  
"Here and there."  
  
"Which one do you like the most?"  
  
"I like all of them."  
  
"Did you buy them?"  
  
"No."  
  
Billy could hear the other boy sighing next to him and he ran his hand through his styled curls before looking over at the brunette. "What?"  
  
"It's hard to have a conversation with you."  
  
"Then don't have one. Will for sure save me a lot of stress." The blonde rolled his eyes, stretching his shoulders, he turned away from the boy to watch the drunk teenagers stumbling around in front of them.  
  
That was until he felt Jonathan poke his side. He whipped his head to the side, staring at the other boy who looked almost amused. "What are you doing?"  
  
"I’m knocking on your walls. I’m gonna find a way in."  
  
"Ugh." Billy shoved the other boy softly, making the most annoyed groan he could but his eyes showed playfullness. He felt warm again, sitting so close to his soulmate.  
  
The boys went quiet for a while, Billy smoking another cigarette and Jonathan just sitting there. Both watching the surroundings around them, just enjoying the warmness that filled their bodies thanks to their connection.  
  
"I wanted to apologize." The brunette suddenly spoke, earing a puzzled look from the blonde next to him. "For what I said."  
  
"Don't." Billy shook his head quickly, not wanting Jonathan to apologize to him. "I don't care that you freaked out about it."  
  
"Not that." Jonathan was quick to shake his head as well, pushing away the hair that was falling down into his eyes. "I wanted to apologize for calling you a pansy." He then continued more quietly, making Billy shift uncomfortably next to him.  
  
"It's something that my father used so often, it just came into my mind. And I realized only after how much like my father I sounded. And I don't want to be like him."  
  
The honesty of Jonathan's words was carving into the blonde's body like a knife and for a second he actually thought he might be sick. He understood where Jonathan was coming from. He, himself, hated when he acted like his own father. And when he would realize it only after he did so. Only after something happened.  
  
And he knew it happened a lot, he knew he was slowly but surely becoming his own father.  
  
Billy felt his breathing starting to quicken, finding it harder to breathe as the flashes of him beating someone's face or screaming at someone came all flashing back.  
  
From the corner of his eye, he noticed Jonathan's hand reaching for his shoulder, not touching, but reaching for it. He quickly moved away, standing up right after that. He walked back to the house, wanting to get shit faced more than anything right now.  
  
——  
  
He pushed through the crowd of people, heading straight to the kitchen to get himself a drink. A bowl of punch was standing right on the counter and he grabbed one of the red cups, filling it full with punch before downing it down his throat in one go.  
  
The blonde went for a second one when he noticed Jonathan pushing himself through the people into the kitchen. A sigh left Billy's body since he hoped Jonathan wouldn't follow him, so he didn't have to look at a constant reminder of 'I am better than you because I don't want to be like my dad'.  
  
He ignored the other boy, downing another drink as he licked his lips, throwing the red cup away. It didn't taste as good and he wanted something else. He opened the fridge and grabbed himself a beer, opening it quickly he took a swing before leaning against the counter.  
  
"You alright?"  
  
A small frown started appearing on Billy's face as he looked over at the brunette who was standing a few feet away, looking at him with a slightly concerned expression.  
  
"Just stop talking." He snapped, the buzz feeling of drinking alcohol filling his body again. He knew he didn't want to snap at Jonathan but he couldn't help himself. He started realizing more and more how different they were. Jonathan was good and he wasn't.  
  
He pushed himself off the counter and pushed past Jonathan to walk back to the boys, who were now standing around the fireplace, laughing and drinking. That was exactly what Billy wanted to do, just forget about everything, get drunk and laugh with the boys.  
  
The blonde reached them, the beer still in his hand as he patted one of the boys shoulder, making himself a part of the circle. "What did I miss?" He said into the atmosphere and the boys started bombarding him with multiple stories and versions of what they did. He let it in with one of his ear and let it out immediately with the other one.  
  
He let his eyes wonder around the room again, searching the room to see if Jonathan left. And he was a bit surprised when he saw him talking to some girl. Or more like trying to get away from the girl that was talking to him.  
  
The brunette's look was filled with a slight hint of panic as he looked up and his eyes found the blue ones. Billy just formed some sort of a smirk on his face as he took a sip of the beer, watching Jonathan try to get away from the girl with amusement.  
  
The photographer eventually escaped the girl and made his way to the blonde again. It seemed to be a theme for them this evening. Billy going somewhere and Jonathan following him. The taller boy didn't mind, at least he didn't have to take care of him or something.  
  
When Jonathan reached him again, he just looked over him, noticing that some of the boys including Tommy noticed Jonathan as well.  
  
"What, Byers? You got a girlfriend at the last party and now you are trying to get a best friend?" The freckled boy mocked, looking at Jonathan with amused expression, the boys laughing along with him.  
  
Billy just stayed quiet, sipping his beer as he watched Jonathan, waiting for some type of a reaction. But Jonathan just looked tired and annoyed. When he thought about it, the blonde didn't really blame him. He knew the brunette wasn't used to parties so being here and having to listen to the boys's comments, it must have been annoying.  
  
"Where is the princess now that we mentioned it?" Tommy continued, throwing his hands around as he laughed loudly. "Are you and Steve taking shifts now or what?" The boys laughed again and the blonde felt a small grin forming on his face as well, he didn't even notice.  
  
Jonathan just rolled his eyes and Billy felt his eyes on him for a moment but the blonde ignored him, looking at the boys instead and drinking his beer. When he finally looked at the brunette again, he saw him turning around and heading to the door to leave.  
  
The blonde left out a sigh and finished his beer, letting his mind go blank as he challenged the boys to a drinking game to distract them from Jonathan and to get them to help him get drunk.  
  
——  
  
After an hour of playing drinking games, trying to out race each other and see who can drink the most, the boys were all stumbling around and laughing, drunk off their asses.  
  
The blonde was walking around the place, watching his surroundings as he kept the can of beer he had close to him. His vision was a bit blurry, his mind was filled with too many thoughts for his own good. He needed a distraction.  
  
He was looking around, looking for a girl that wouldn't annoy him too much and wasn't too drunk for his own liking. The blue eyed boy scanned the room, noticing a girl coming out of the kitchen, he was pretty sure she was named Ally. The two of them exchanged a few looks in school and she wasn't bad looking.  
  
The boy made his way towards her, a wide grin showing on his face when she noticed him walking towards her, she smiled back at him and he already knew how this night was going to end.  
  
Billy then stayed over, sleeping in some room Tommy pointed him to, the girl sleeping by his side. But he woke up early, way earlier than everyone and he left the house quickly, not wanting to talk to the girl or any of the boys. He drove home, ignoring the voices in his mind telling him not to drive since he was still intoxicated from the alcohol in his body.  
  
He just shook the thoughts away, telling himself that after all this was not the first time he drove with the alcohol only leaving his body and not being completely gone already. He was a good driver and he got home safe. Parking the car in front of the house, he went in as silently as he could and headed straight to his room.  
  
The blonde then just laid around for a bit before getting up to take a shower, getting himself some food and getting ready for the next day. By the time he was all ready and set, Max got out of her room as well and he noticed Susan standing in the kitchen. He greeted both of them and sat down at the dining table, waiting for Max to finish getting ready.  
  
Susan asked him where he was last night and after he replied he was at a friend's house, the woman seemed to be satisfied with the answer, not asking any more questions and only offering him a toast which he gladly took.  
  
His head never hurt after drinking, he didn't feel sick or anything. He always felt fine and most of the boys found that irritating since they often walked around looking like zombies after a party.  
  
And so when the blonde finally got to school and went to see the boys, he laughed at their exhausted faces, mocking them loudly and enjoying the annoyed groans he got when their heads started hurting. "You know what they say, if you can't drink, don't do it." He would say and they would all point at each others and laugh.   
  
He ignored most of the lessons, looking out of the window, listening to whatever Tommy was saying, playing with his pencil, throwing paper balls at his classmates. Another boring day.  
  
——  
  
The last lesson just finished and the blue eyed boy was standing in front of his locker, throwing the notebooks he had in his hand into the locker when he saw movement next to him. He turned his head a bit to the side to see Jonathan standing next to him.  
  
"Do you need something?" He asked, stuffing his things intot he locker with force since it wouldn't fit inside, the locker being overloaded with useless things and books.   
  
"I came to your party." The brunette simply replied, holding onto the strap of his bag. "I noticed." The blue eyed boy chuckled softly, taking some of hids books and placing them against Jonathan's chest. "Hold this." He then said, trying to organize the mess in his locker.  
  
"I did what you asked me to. So, what's gonna happen now?" The blonde eyed the boy next to him with a puzzled look. "You wanted to hang out. We did. So, what is going to happen now is that you are gonna leave me alone." He then said with a strong voice, taking the books from Jonathan and throwing them into his locker, slamming the locker door after that to make sure it holds.  
  
"Why are you like this?" The brunette let out, surprising the blonde by the annoyance that was filled in Jonathan's voice. "Excuse me?" Billy raised an eyebrow at the other boy, his hand still resting on his locker.  
  
"What happened that made you have such an angry complex that you have to act like a dick to everyone?" Jonathan spat out, clearly getting fed up with the blone's behaviour towards him. The mentioned blonde only stared at the brunette in front of him, deciding if he should be insulted or pleased.  
  
"Were you never validated as a child, or? Were you never invited to birthday parties as a child? That made you be so against having friends?" The potographer continued and a slight shock and disbelief started filling the blonde's body as he continued to stare at Jonathan.  
  
"Do you think you are the only one with an asshole for a father? Do you think you are the only person being forced to move cities? Being forced to do something they don't want to? I have a surprise for you, you are not."  
  
Frustration was written all over the brunette's face and the corners of the blonde's mouth almost went up when he saw the small fire showing in the brown eyes. He licked his lips as he leaned a bit to the side, his eyes never leaving the boy in front of him.  
  
"Anyway, you have to seriously get over it and start behaving like a human. Stop walking around like a fucking cliche." The brunette ended his rant towards the blonde, taking a breath that he was holding in before he brushed past Billy.  
  
The blonde just watched him, a small grin playing on his lips. Not many people questioned him like this, stood up to him like this. Not many would dare. And yet here was Jonathan, almost spitting in his face for being a dick to him. In school, where anyone could see or hear.  
  
Billy looked around, noticing that the hallway was mostly empty. He then licked his lips as he watched the brunette exit the school. He knew he was going to the music store, he heard him talking about it to Nancy earlier.  
  
Debating if he should give in and go along or continue being closed off towards the brunette. His soulmate wanted to be his friend and he stood up for himself when he was being treated badly. The blonde respected that, he valued that in people. It took him by surprise that Jonathan had this in him, but it was a pleasant surprise. It made him actually want get to know him to see what else he has hiding inside.  
  
And so he pushed himself away from the locker and caught up to the other boy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would like to thank the TV show called Skam for giving me inspiration.   
> If you want to see where I got the last part of the chapter from, you can watch it here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nfnMnkRk9Ek from 0:45.


	5. Hug

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two abused boys share a bond they didn't ask for. Becoming close and questioning everything.
> 
> ——
> 
> Or: Since Billy isn't getting the redemption in the show, I am giving him one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for continuing this story!

  
  
_hug;_  
  
is the way of making the other person feel safe and cared about.  
  
——  
  
It has been three weeks since Billy followed his soulmate outside, since Jonathan let him go to the music store with him, since Billy showed pure interest in Jonathan's interests and opinions about music, since Jonathan seemed to give him another chance.  
  
The two of them started spending more time with each other, meeting intentionally and also unintentionally. They didn't spend time together at school, Jonathan stayed with his friends and Billy stayed with his boys group.  
  
But sometimes they would nod at each other in school, sometimes Billy would look behind his shoulder at Jonathan to find him actually paying attention in class, sometimes they would share a look during lunch.  
  
They did hang outside school though.  
  
Billy came to Jonathan's work a few times. The brunette worked in the theater, behind the ticket counter or by the popcorn machine. One time Billy would annoy the other boy until he would give him popcorn just to shut him up, one time Billy would actually buy a ticket and go see a movie only to leave in the middle because he got bored. One time Billy would be just leaning against the counter, talking to Jonathan.  
  
Jonathan would invite him to the school's dark room. They shared a lunch one time, the brunette telling Billy to be careful around the things so he doesn't ruin them. The other time Billy watched Jonathan develop his photos, asking about each photo and enjoying watching the brunette talk about his passion with sparkles in his eyes. Billy would often ask him about photography to see him light up.  
  
One time the two boys would meet in front of the Arcade, Jonathan driving Will and Billy driving Max. The blonde for once didn't drive away right after dropping his step-sister off. He parked his car in the parking lot, smoking his cigarette. He wouldn't admit it out loud but he knew he was waiting for Jonathan. He had a bad day and he knew seeing his soulmate would calm him down.  
  
Jonathan then of course came, sending his brother to the Arcade and noticing the blonde's car, parking his own right next to Billy's. The two boys then just stood outside, leaning against their cars, talking, not noticing the time. Only realizing what time it is when both of their siblings got out of the Arcade, making their way to them, suggesting that the two boys have been talking for over an hour.  
  
One time Billy would catch him during a break, telling him to skip the last period with him. The brunette hesitated but went with him in the end. The blonde ended up driving them to another city without even meaning to. The boys kind of repeated their trip to Nashville. They went to the first store they saw, picking out snacks for each other, they drove around the city with Jonathan taking pictures here and there, they found a theatre and went to see a movie that Billy didn't pay attention to since he found out annoying Jonathan was way more fun.  
  
One time Jonathan would invite him to go to the forest with him to take pictures, surprising the blonde by that since he thought it was the photographer's own little ritual. But he agreed and ended up following Jonathan around the Hawkins forest, watching Jonathan in his element once again. Billy would eventually snatch the brunette's camera, taking a picture of him as well even after his protests.  
  
——  
  
This time Billy was parking his car in front of the familiar house, picking up his step-sister from another of her gaming session. He truly didn't understand what the kids did there for hours but he didn't ask any questions, just picked her up when she asked him to.  
  
He walked to the house, ringing the bell as he threw away his cigarette. He was just straightening his jacket when the door opened and to his horror, Nancy herself was standing there, not Nancy's mother like usual.  
  
Billy knew that his soulmate's girlfirned was aware they spent time together more often now, but the blonde never actually spoke to the girl. And he knew she didn't like him, or he thought so anyway.  
  
"Hey." He eventually let out, keeping his usual face on, making sure not to let a single muscle in his face show how uncomfortable he felt talking to her.  
  
"Hey." The girl replied formaly and the boy guessed she didn't want to seem rude. "You picking up Max?" She then asked and he almost rolled his eyes or laughed at her but stopped himself from doing so. _What else would he be doing here? Going for a sleepover?  
_  
The blonde just nodded at her, hooking his thumb over his pocket, playing with the denim material. He kept his eyes onto the girl in front of him, watching her open the door a little more and step to the side.  
  
"Jonathan is downstairs with the kids." Nancy then said and the boy almost choked on air when he stepped into the house, his gaze turning at the girl next to him again. "Okay?" He wasn't sure what to say, he didn't know why she was telling him this.  
  
The girl just watched him, with slight curiosity playing in her eyes. She then closed the front door behind her, walking towards another door that he guessed went to the basement where the kids apparently always were.  
  
He walked behind her slowly, looking around he searched the house for the woman he so often talked to. He was just about to ask the Wheeler girl if her mother is around when she spoke. "You coming along?"  
  
The blonde looked at her, noticing that she was standing next the door, her hand already being on the handle. He was definitely not going down there. He would rather sit here alone than go to interrupt the kids while they were hanging out.  
  
Nancy was still standing there, waiting for a response and the boy was just about to say something among the lines 'Fuck, no. I would rather die.' when another female's voice cut the awkward atmosphere. "Nancy, who was it?"  
  
The male turned his head a bit to the side, seeing the only Wheeler female he felt comfortable around looking over at him and her daughter from the spot she was in, sitting in the living room. "Hey, Karen." He said, nodding in her direction as a slight grin spread on his face.  
  
The woman returned the greeting and Billy just walked towards her, ignoring Nancy's question and walking over to her mother, letting her know by this gesture that he is definitely not going downstairs with her.  
  
"What are you doing, huh?" He said once he was a few feet away from the woman, running his hand through his hair as he walked towards her. She was sitting on the couch with the TV playing, a book placed on the table along with a plate of biscuits and a nail file in her hands. He guessed she was relaxing.  
  
She pointed for him to sit down and he did so, taking a biscuit after he was offered one. It reminded him of their first meeting and a sly grin placed itself on his face at the memory of her in the bathing robe.  
  
The two of them soon fell into their own little bubble, him asking what she is watching, how was her day, what she has been up to, her doing the same. The usual for the two of them, but it was as always filled with the blonde's compliments and flirtation, making the woman feel flattered.  
  
His eyes then fell onto the book on the table, taking it into his hands to take a look. "Heart of Thunder." He then purred out, the cornes of his lips raising once again when he looked at the male on the cover, noticing that it was very similar to him.  
  
"We look pretty similar, don't you think?" He then continued, using his lowest voice as he raised the book next to his face, raising his eyebrow slightly at the woman in front of him, noticing that a blush was spreading across her face.  
  
She then snatched the book from him, replying with. "I don't see the similarity." And the boy had to laugh softly, the woman laughing along with him. He then leaned back into his chair, enjoying the presence of the woman next to him.  
  
Footsteps could be heard and both of them turned to the source of the voices, noticing the door of the basement opening and numerous kids and teenagers pouring out of the them.  
  
Jonathan was one of the first people to come out and the blonde's gaze immediately fixed on him, seeing the little smile the brunette gave him. He then shifted his gaze onto his step-sister as he stood up from the chair, pulling up his jeans as he did so.  
  
"See you around, Karen." He then said his usual line as he turned to leave the Wheelers house, looking at Max who followed his actions and gave her goodbyes before turning to the exit along with her step-brother.  
  
When he was passing Jonathan, it looked like the boy stumbled on his feet of some sort, leaning a bit to the side and Billy could feel him putting something into his pocket and he almost laughed out loud when he realized the other boy was passing him a note.  
  
He couldn't help himself and laughed a little, but making sure it sounded a little mocking as he gripped onto the other boy's shoulder, helping him to stand straight again and giving the expression of mocking him for almost falling down. But the boys locked eyes and there was no mockiness in Billy's eyes, wanting to make Jonathan see he wasn't making fun of him.  
  
The step-siblings then left the house to go home, this time actually having some sort of a conversation since Billy seemed to be in a good mood for once.  
  
——  
  
The blonde parked his car in front of his soulmate's house, getting out slowly as he took a long drag of his cigarette, staring at the house in front of him. He has been here after his encounter with Steve but he hasn't been inside again after that night. He felt uncomfortable about it, almost nervous.  
  
He walked slowly, his tongue clicking behind his teeth as he looked all over the house. Last time he was inside, he didn't really look around as he was too out of his head to even acknowledge his surroundings. He did remember the drawnings on the walls and sometimes he felt like asking Jonathan about it, but Jonathan never asked about anything that had happen, so the blonde didn't either.  
Billy found it a bit unsettling sometimes, wondering why Jonathan never asked him anything. He was friends with the kids, he was hanging out with Steve, he knew what happened. Yet he never asked, it kind of worried the blonde in some way.  
  
The blonde took another drag of his cigarette and slowly walked up the steps of the stairs, finishing his cigarette he noticed an ash tray on the window and so he placed his cigarette there before knocking onto the door softly.  
  
He could hear shuffling inside and footsteps and he wondered if Jonathan is home alone since he invited him over. He hoped so. He only saw his younger brother with his sister a couple of times and he saw his mother once, when he came to pick him up for their trip to Nashville. He really hoped he didn't have to face them tonight.  
  
When the door finally opened, the brunette was revealed standing behind them, dressed the most comfortable Billy has ever seen him. Being just in a pair of sweats and a jumper. "Hey." Jonathan then said, a hint of a slight grin playing on his lips as he stepped away a bit to let the blonde in.  
  
"Is this a booty call?" The other boy replied instead, reaching into his pocket to pull out the note Jonathan gave him earlier. He then unfolded the piece of paper, raising it right in front of his face for the brunette to see, even though he was the one who wrote it.  
  
**'Come over tonight.'**  
  
"No, it's not a booty call!" The brunette called out in frustration, snatching the note from the blonde who just laughed at how frustrated he could make his soulmate in a matter of seconds. "Then stop undressing me with your eyes." He purred out, the playfullness and sarcasm dripping from his voice.  
  
"I am adding more clothes." Was the reply he got and he chuckled softly, finally stepping inside and brushing past the smaller male.  
  
As soon as he stepped inside, his eyes wandered around the place, noticing that it looked cleaned and so domestic. Pictures of cute drawnings on the walls, featuring photos of the family. It definitely looked very different from the last time he was here.  
  
"Why am I here exactly?" The blue eyed boy then said, his eyes still searching the room he was standing in, being a little surprised when he found out it looked perfectly normal.  
  
He then turned around to look at Jonathan again who was playing with the sleeve of his shirt, looking a bit unsure. "I figured we could hang out. My mom is working late and Will is sleeping over at Mike's with the boys." His soulmate spoke, looking everywhere but at Billy.  
  
"Why aren't you with your girlfriend?" The blonde questioned, slowly walking forward to the middle of the room, still feeling a little unsure in this house.  
  
The brunette scratched the back of his neck, almost frowning a little before answering. "We don't have to spend all of our time together, I think she is studying anyway." He then said and Billy noticed he might be a little uncomfortable talking about his relationship. The blonde understood that, he didn't like to discuss his relationships either.  
  
"She knows you hanging out with me?" He then questioned, leaning against the chair he reached, looking over at his soulmate that followed his steps. "I don't think she would approve." He added before the brunette started speaking again.  
  
"She trusts me to take care of myself."  
  
"Mhm." The blonde mumbled, his tongue sliding over his dry lips. The times they have hung out, they were always somewhere random. Never at each other's houses. Billy wouldn't take him there anyway and he didn't expect for his soulmate to invite him over as well. It felt too intimate.  
  
"Why did you invite me over?"  
  
"Aren't you tired of sneaking around as if we are guilty of something?" Billy was surprised by the brunette's words. He often found himself being either shocked or pleased by Jonathan's actions. He liked that the boy was sassy and could bite back, but he was also honest and tolerating.  
  
"Aren't you?" He questioned once again, eyeing the shorter boy. He should be. Billy knew his past actions didn't paint him as the best person for Jonathan to hang out with. Yet, the photographer never said anything about it and it felt as if the topic the both boys avoided was hanging in the air with them.  
  
"Are you?" Jonathan hit back instead of answering, making the blonde shift slightly in his position. He managed to maintain eye contact with the other boy before he shook his head in the slightest, almost hoping the brunette wouldn't notice.  
  
But he did, and he gave one of the faintest smiles to the blonde. "You hungry?"  
  
——  
  
After Jonathan's many attempts of listing numerous foods for Billy to pick from and after numerous of the blonde's shrugs and 'I don't care's', the brunette just ended up putting two bowls at the the table, placing the milk and two boxes of cereals on the table.  
  
Billy didn't mind any food, he simply didn't want for Jonathan to make him anything. He told the boy he wasn't hungry but his stomach failed him a few minutes later, making the smaller boy go into his cooking phase.  
  
He sat down by the table, reaching for the cereal as he watched Jonathan in disbelief as he poured the milk first into his own bowl. "What are you doing?"  
  
"Playing football? What does it look like I am doing?" The brunette answered with his casual sass.  
  
"Why are you disrecpeting this? Milk goes in second, you put the cereal in first." Billy replied, narrowing his eyes as he looked back and forth between Jonathan and his bowl.  
  
The boy opposite him just let out a laugh. "Why does that even matter?" He questioned, a grin playing on his lips.  
  
"Because now your cereal are going to float on top of the milk and it's going to be ruined and saggy." The blonde replied, wrinkling his nose dramatically as he took the box of cereal, putting some into his bowl.  
  
"They are going to make the contact with the milk anyway?" The photographer kept on laughing as he watched the other boy look at him in slight confusion and disbelief.  
  
"No, no, no." Billy shook his head, snatching the milk from Jonathan's hands, pouring it into his bowl to show Jonathan the right way to make cereal. "See? Now, doesn't that look better? It looks right." He spoke, his own face showing he was holding back a laugh.  
  
"Oh my god." The brunette rolled his eyes, putting his own amount of cereal into his bowl, laughing softly once again after seeing the blonde's expressions. A cereal was then thrown his way and he threw one right back at the blue eyed boy.  
  
The two of them then kept on throwing cereals back and forth until Jonathan hit Billy exactly in the eye, making the blonde chuckle to his surprise. They then stopped acting childish and ate their cereal.  
  
——  
  
After they finished their bickering about cereals and eating the mentioned cereals, the brunette cleaned the bowls while the blonde explored the kitchen and the living room, looking at every photo and drawing on the walls, exploring the shelves and the house in general.  
  
He felt a little bit more comfortable being here now, being sure it was because of being close to his soulmate, feeling how their bond was pulling inside him and the warm filling his body.  
  
"So when are you going to show me your room, pretty boy?" He then called out, turning around to look at Jonathan.  
  
The other boy finally pulled himself away from the counter where he was standing all this time, walking towards to Billy who was chewing the inside of his cheek as he watched his soulmate walk into the direction of what he guessed was his room.  
  
He followed right after him, his eyes exploring the hallway before he finally stepped into Jonathan's room. He felt as if he was stepping into his own soulmate's privacy.  
  
Billy's eyes scanned the whole room, finding the made bed, the clothes thrown over a chair, the Evil Dead poster on his wall, the mix tapes placed all over the place, the boxes peaking out from under the bed.  
  
"It fits you." The blonde then said, shrugging his jacket off his shoulders and placing it onto the chair which was close to the door. "It looks depressing as fuck."  
  
"No, it doesn't." The brunette replied back defensively, frowning slightly as his eyes watched Billy's movements. "It's so grey and washed out. But it's not bad. It's just you." He said honestly, feeling relaxed in the room since he felt his soulmate's presence everywhere.  
  
"So now you know me, huh?" The other boy questioned mockingly, raising his eyebrow slightly as he sat down on his bed, falling down onto it as soon as Billy gave him a shove along with the words 'Shut up'.  
  
Jonathan just let out a little laugh and the blonde sat down on the edge of the bed as well, feeling the bed shift under his weight. Billy felt his boots hit something under the bed and he looked down to find a box marked with '1983'.  
  
He reached for the box, pulling it out from under the bed before even asking. "What's this?" He said, his eyes finding Jonathan's face as he placed his hands on the top of the box, tapping his fingers against the box.  
The boy next to him sat back up, eyeing the box and Billy could see how unsure he was. It was as if he got uncomfortable and scared in a second. "It's memories. I keep things to look back at them when I am older." The blonde noticed his soulmate's voice was a little quieter than usual.  
  
Billy opened the box slightly, not enough to see what's in it but enough to reavel a slight space between the inside of the box and the top of the box. He was looking at Jonathan to find a sign of approval and when the boy next to him give him a slight nod, he knew he was allowed to look.  
  
The blonde then went to open the box, looking inside it as soon as it was open, finding all sorts of papers and photos inside. He pulled out something that caught his eye, a paper with a picture of Jonathan's brother on it along with the words 'Have you seen me?'  
  
He heard about Jonathan's past, how his brother went missing, how he had a funeral just to be miracly found. Tommy told him about it and he wanted to ask Jonathan about the topic for a while now, being genuinely interested in how it could even happen.  
  
"What was this about?" He then asked, waving the paper in front of his face, his gaze fixed on Jonathan to see what reaction he would get. To his surprise, he didn't see Jonathan close down or pull away, the brunette just took the paper into his own hands, his fingers fluttering over the picture of his brother.  
  
"I am sure you heard about it already."  
  
"Not from you."  
  
Jonathan watched the other boy with a slight curiosty playing in his eyes before answering. "You know, he went missing one night. And we were looking for him and then one night they pulled a body from the lake and it was very decomposed and everyone thought it was Will. We had a funeral and well, we found him in the end."  
  
The blonde frowned slightly, watching the other boy's expressions to figure out this story that just didn't seem so right to him. "Wouldn't it take a longer time for the body to decompose though? And didn't Will go missing just for a couple of days?"  
  
Jonathan seemed to be a little taken back by the question but he quickly recovered. "I don't know." His voice hinted a hint of uncomfortableness and unsureness.  
  
"And where was he found?" Billy hit him with another question, trying to put together the missing pieces in Jonathan's story.  
  
He watched Jonathan shift uncomfortably and he took it as a hint to stop talking about this topic. He figured it might be a little touchy. "I don't want to talk about it anymore." The other boy then said and it only confirmed Billy's assumptions.  
  
The blonde then took the piece of paper back, putting it back into the box and pulled out an album instead, wiggling it in Jonathan's way.  
  
The two boys then explored the album, Billy listening to Jonathan talk about every and each picture, the comfortable atmosphere coming back.  
  
——  
  
After they explored the whole album, Billy making him pull out more albums from other boxes just to laugh at pictures of Jonathan who would go red every now and then from embarrassment.  
  
Billy put the boxes they were exploring at the moment back under the bed, his eyes finding the last box he hadn't opened yet. It was the one with '1985' on it. He thought it might be empty since it was just the start of the year but he still pulled the box out.  
  
What he didn't expect was for Jonathan to take the box away from his hands, pulling it as far away as possible. "Not this one." The other boy then said, trying to put the box back under the bed.  
  
The blonde tried to reach for the box but the smaller boy pulled away. "Come on." Billy rolled his eyes, catching the box into his hands as he snatched the box back before Jonathan could take it back away from him, he opened the box and looked inside.  
  
  
A piece of paper immediately caught his eye since he recognized the earring on the paper. He could hear the boy next to him groaning in frustation but Billy didn't spare him a look, his gaze was fixed on the drawing he just pulled out of the box.  
  
There were numerous sketches of his eyes and lips, his hair, his jacket, his earring, his cigarette. He stared at the drawing in slight shock. "Did you sketch this?" He asked, sounding more quiet than usual. It was almost as a whisper.  
  
The redness that was covering his soulmate's whole face was enough of an answer for him. He stayed quiet for a second, looking all over the drawing before putting it back inside. He could see that Jonathan wouldn't want to answer his questions and he wasn't going to ask. He wasn't even sure if he wanted to know the answers himself.  
  
He closed the box and put it back under the bed, looking over at Jonathan from the corner of his eyes who was slightly hiding his face in his hands.  
  
The blonde then stood up fixing his jeans as he moved away from the bed, taking a few steps to Jonathan's music player that was placed close to the bed. "Why don't you put some of your mix tapes in?" He then said, looking out of Jonathan's window.  
  
He could hear the other boy moving next to him as he stood up from the bed to grab some of his mix tapes, Billy's eyes fell upon the tapes and he noticed some type of writings on them. He looked over the other boy's shoulders and a playfull grin found its way onto his face.  
  
"Really?" He then laughed a bit, taking one of the tapes to properly look at it. 'For when you are happy'. He shook his head slightly, his tongue scanning his teeth before another chuckle escaped his throat. "Of course you would."  
  
"Shut up." The boy next to him shoved his side a little and another grin appeared on the blonde's face. He liked that Jonathan wasn't afraid to be playfull with him, to give him a shove, to give him a roll of the eyes, to give him an annoyed groan. Not many people were like this with Billy and he liked it.  
  
"I made them for my brother. And my mom, but she doesn't listen to them often." The brunette then said, picking up another tape that said 'For when you are sad'.  
  
Billy knew that Jonathan was very close with his family, he also picked up on the fact that the brunette was some of a father figure to his brother. He noticed how the boy's eyes got full of warmness and love each and every time he talked about his family.  
  
His hand flew up to touch his necklace without him even realizing so. Seeing Jonathan take such care about his family and love them so much made him miss his mother after such a long time. Billy would always miss her but sometimes he seemed to forget about her when too much was happening in his life.  
  
But now he could feel sadness washing over him again as he wrapped his fingers around the necklace. He dozed off into his memories, the images of his mother flashing in front of his eyes.  
  
"You always wear that necklace." Jonathan's voice cut through his day dreaming and he blinked once before he looked at the boy next to him. He let his fingers fall down from his necklace. "Mhm." He mumbled, leaning against the table as he looked away from the other boy.  
  
"Does it mean anything?" He could hear Jonathan's soft voice again and a sigh almost escaped his throat. He really didn't want to talk about anything from his past with Jonathan. Especially not his mother.  
  
"None of your business." He could hear himself saying and it felt wrong to say so. He himself had explored the house, the photos and the drawnings. And he knew it wasn't fair to shut his soulmate down but he did so as a reflex.  
  
"Why don't you let me in? We are friends." The brunette spoke slowly and Billy could feel the brown eyes on him and he shifted a bit. "No, we aren't."  
  
"Then what are we?" The other boy questioned, sounding a little frustrated with the blonde and he didn't really blame him.  
  
"Two people being forced to share a bond they don't want to." He spat out, his fingers were playing with each others. He wanted to smoke a cigarette and he was about to go for a smoke until he heard Jonathan speak up again.  
  
"I thought we were past that." A sigh filled the room and Billy cringed when he realized it sounded almost sad. He didn't know what he is supposed to say. He himself knew that what he was implying was bullshit.  
  
"We are friends. You came after me to the music store, Billy. Don't be lying to yourself now."  
  
"No, no." Billy turned around to face the other boy, his tongue making a clicking sound as he pointed between them. "I am friends with Tommy and the rest of the boys. You are friends with your little group."  
  
"Oh, really? You and Tommy are friends? That's weird, I have never seen you two hanging out anywhere else than school or parties."  
  
The blonde narrowed his eyes as he stared at the brunette in front of him. "You don't know shit about me." He said, poking the boy's chest with his finger.  
  
"I do know that you are not just some stupid party boy. I notice things even if you don't want me to." The boy spoke, taking a little step closer and the blonde could almost shrink at how much he didn't want to be here right now.  
  
"I noticed that you are actually not shit at school when you want to. I saw your notes when we sat together." The brunette started and Billy just knew another of the boy's rants is coming his way.  
  
"I noticed that you do enjoy listening to music, you do enjoy just relaxing instead of being so angry all the time."  
  
"Stop."  
  
"I also noticed that you like to joke around, you do want to have someone to joke around with."  
  
"Stop." The blonde gritted through his teeth, biting onto his tongue as his breathing started to quicken. Everything that Jonathan was saying was true and he wanted him to stop.  
  
"No, I also noticed that you do actually care even though you maybe don't realize it. You stayed with me multiple times until my shift was over."  
  
"Stop." He let out once again, his fingers twitching and he just wanted to reach for his jacket to get his cigarettes.  
  
"I know that you gave me back that pen on Christmas. I also know that you don't want me to pay for any gas whenever we go anywhere. You let me share that room with you even if we didn't know each other that much back then."  
  
"Jonathan." The blonde gritted out and his head was pounding like crazy, feeling the closeness of his soulmate was making him feel so overheated. And Jonathan's words were like daggers digging into his brain.  
  
"No. You act as if you don't care about anything but I think you do." The brunette said, taking another step towards the blonde who was biting onto his bottom lip so hard it almost drew blood.  
  
"Stop acting as if you know me! You don't know shit about me!" He then called out angrily, one of his hands pointing at the boy in front of him as the other one twitched by his side.  
  
"But that's where you are wrong, I can see right through your facade you put up!" The boy spat right back, making Billy grit his teeth togeher as they stared at each others.  
  
"You are so full of shit." The blonde spat out angrily, placing his hand onto the table next to him to hold onto it to make his hand stop from twitching.  
  
"Okay, we got anger. No surprise here. Let it all out." The brunette replied sarcastically, thowing his hands around.  
  
"Stop sounding like some fucking therapist."  
  
Billy's words were rewarded with a sarcastic chuckle from the other boy. "I am no therapist but I do care about you." He then said, a little more softly than before.  
  
His words made the blonde shift a bit in his position as he looked away from the other boy who was way too close for his own liking. His breath started to get caught in his throat and he knew that the feeling of anger was being washed over by the warmth coming from Jonathan.  
  
"I don't need you to." He let out, hating the fact that his voice sounded a bit shaky. All the memories of his mother, his actual friends from California and the good times with Max came all back to him and he hated how he could feel himself tremble a little.  
  
"But I do. You will have to accept that." The anger was full gone from Jonathan's voice and the blonde had to hold onto the table from stopping himself from bashing his own head open when he noticed how kind the other boy's voice was.  
  
"I don't fucking want you to." He almost whispered, it sounded almost broken. He didn't know if it was the memories that came coming to him, or if it was the years of being alone without anyone to truly care about him, or the intense bond they shared, making the emotions go double when they were with each other. But Billy could feel himself trembling, almost breaking.  
  
"I know." Was all he could hear before he felt Jonathan's hands on his arms and he knew what was coming and he tried to pull away but his strength was slowly leaving him as the boy pulled him into an embrace.  
  
It has been many years since Billy has been this close to someone, since someone embraced him like this. Not the boys giving him a pat on the back, not the girls trying to crawl all over him.  
  
But just a genuine hug from someone that cared about him. The last person who he was this close to was his mother and when the blonde remembered the last time he hugged his mother, he found himself almost not breathing and somehow his arms wrapped around the other boy that was still holding him.  
  
It was as if he was breaking and Jonathan was trying to pick up the pieces.  
  
The blonde let his eyes close for a second as he breathed in the boy's scent, knowing that is one of the many factors to make you calmer. Your soulmate's smell.  
  
He felt the heat coming from Jonathan's arms, buring into his back. He could feel the boy's breath ghosting over his neck. He could all the warmness of his body washing over him and calming him down.  
  
And so he let it happen, allowing the hug to continue for another couple of seconds.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have made a playlist to this story if anyone wants to listen to it!  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQvC7IEn1Y4&list=PL3RunoLkaOC0G76frPmSHW95ehY4DtS1e


	6. Loneliness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two abused boys share a bond they didn't ask for. Becoming close and questioning everything.
> 
> ——
> 
> Or: Since Billy isn't getting the redemption in the show, I am giving him one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for continuing this story!
> 
> Angst is coming your way!

_loneliness;_

being alone when you desire otherwise.  
  
——  
  
Another few weeks passed since the two boys shared their intimate moment. Jonathan never brought it up and Billy haven't mentioned it either. It hadn't happened again since.  
  
The two of them continued to spend some days with each other, a little less than usual since Jonathan tried to focus on studying a little more, making the blonde do the same.  
  
But they still found some time to go to the music store, to go to the lake so Jonathan can take pictures or to take spontaneous road trips to the middle of nowhere. Billy would continue to stop by at Jonathan's work, actually ending up watching a movie one time.  
  
Jonathan would invite Billy over a few times but he would only come by when no one else was there. And that didn't happen much often so the two soulmates spent time together in the safe place of Jonathan's room maybe once or twice.  
  
What appeared to be the most usual place for them to spend time together was the dark room. It seemed as if Jonathan and two other girls were the only ones actually interested in photography in this school. And the two of the girls didn't really pay attention to them and if they did, it was because Billy gave them of his flirtatious smiles.  
  
That was where they were right now, in the dark room developing the pictures Jonathan took the last time they were by the lake.

This time the brunette actually let the blue eyed boy touch something. The blonde was still a little too carefull for his own usual behaviour, he didn't want to ruin Jonathan's pictures by spilling something onto them.  
  
He mostly just looked over the brunette's shoulder and patiently waited for the pictures to develop. He then hung the pictures onto the strings, being quite gentle with them.  
  
The blonde then explored each and every picture, trying to remember if he was with Jonathan or not when the picture was taken.  
  
After he hung the pictures, the boy then just sat on the chair placed in the corner, spinning around and kicking his legs in the air as he waited for Jonathan to finish. The brunette told him he can leave but Billy argumented that if he stayed all this time, he can stay for a little longer.  
  
And so he just sat here and waited for Jonathan to finish.  
  
——

  
Billy squinted his eyes as soon as he entered the hallway again, he noticed his eyes always hurt a bit while stepping back into the light after being in the dark room for some time. He brought up his hand, rubbing his eyes and he could hear Jonathan closing the door behind them.  
  
It was their free period now and sometimes they did spend it together, sometimes the brunette spent it with Nancy and sometimes Billy would get out of the school with the boys.  
  
They were walking back towards the classroom, Billy stopping in his tracks when he heard someone call his name. He turned around and he found _Ally? Ashley? Amy?_ "Yes?" He then asnwered looking over at the girl before turning back to Jonathan who patted his shoulder and pointed to the corner, suggesting he is going to the classroom already.  
  
Billy noticed few girls standing in a group few meters behind the girl that was standing in front of him and he guessed they sent her to talk to him. "Hey, Billy." She said and he could tell she was trying her best to charm him.  
  
He wasn't too interested in her but he was known for always being the heartbreaker and the charmer so he gave the girl a small smirk. "Hey." He purred out, waiting to hear what she wants from him.  
  
"I wanted to invite you to my party on Friday." The girl then continued, pulling a piece of paper from her pocket and handing it to him. He took it gently, his eyes scanning the invite. He didn't know why everyone printed invites now, all they had to do was just say it and the people would come.  
  
"I will see if I have the time." The boy then spoke smugly, flashing her another smirk before he turned around and walked away. He never spoke too long with them, it seemed to be the thing that kept them coming back. Never give them too much, never reveal too much, keep them in mystery, charmed and interested.  
  
The blonde stuffed the piece of paper into his own pocket as he walked around the corner, walking towards the direction of his classroom, he looked around and his gaze fixed on an unusual group immediately. Jonathan standing next to his locker with Tommy and few of the boys approaching him.  
  
He narrowed his eyes as he watched Tommy lean closer to Jonathan and he could hear him calling out 'Byers!'.  
  
Billy flexed his fingers as he walked towards them, his eyes not moving from Tommy and Jonathan. He could see his soulmate barely spearing a glance in the boys's way, probably trying his best to ignore them.  
  
"Oh, Billy! We were just waiting for you!" The boy then called out, turning into his direction along with all the other boys when the blonde reached them.  
  
The mentioned male just scanned them up and down, clicking his tongue behind his teeth before speaking himself. "Why?" His voice sounded cold, almost neutral. He didn't know what the boys wanted from Jonathan but he could feel how uncomfortable his soulmate was.  
  
"We couldn't help but notice you hanging out with the creep lately." The freckled boy continued, pointing towards Jonathan who shut his locker and tried to leave but Tommy stepped in his way. "No, no, no. Wait for a minute, Byers. I have some questions."  
  
Billy leaned against the locker, taking a small step to Jonathan to be closer to him without even realizing so. He felt protectiveness washing over him as he stared at the black haired boy. "Are you trying to tell me who I can and can not hang out with? Because I don't think you have any say in that, dipshit." He spat out, feeling himself tense a little.  
  
Tommy seemed to pause for a second, maybe feeling a little threatened but he soon spoke again. "Oh, everything is alright. I just wanted to ask Byers here some questions, what do you say Byers?" He said, poking the brunette into his chest, the boy just shrinked a little as he tried to walk away just to be stopped again.  
  
"Have you got a little crush on our Billy or what? You want to join the basketball team? You want to best buddies?" The other boy mocked, laughing along with the other boys that came with him.  
  
Billy felt coldness and anger spreading through his veins and he could feel his face muscles starting to twitch. His gaze was boring into Tommy but he could see his soulmate shifting uncomfortably next to him in the corner of his eye. "Go bother someone else, Tommy."   
  
A proudness was showing on the blonde's face the second he heard the brunette's voice, that was until he noticed the freckled boy's hands raising, trying to grab Jonathan's collar. He decided it was enough and he himself pushed past Jonathan and shoved Tommy away. "Stop whining like a little bitch, you started to bore me, I had to find someone else, now didn't I?" He spoke strongly, pushing himself away from the boy.  
  
"So you went to fucking Byers? Are you for real? Are you trying to be the next Zombie Boy?" The boy in front of him spat out and Billy had to shove the photographer back a bit with his hand when he felt him marching towards Tommy.  
  
"Are you trying to tell me what to do?" The blonde spoke, his eyes hardening as he stepped closer to the boy he used to hang out with, their chests almost pressing as they stared at each other. Tommy lasted longer than the other people Billy came face to face with but the blonde wasn't giving him much time.  
  
The blonde didn't like the way Tommy spoke to him and he didn't like how he was insulting his soulmate. He was giving him a chance to back away before Billy would choose another matter of encounter that wouldn't be so pleasant for the other boy.  
  
"Maybe I fucking should. Don't you know that the only thing that comes from the Byers is just problems? Family of fuck ups." The freckled boy mocked loudly, laughing as he provokingly nodded in Jonathan's direction who tried to march towards him again but Billy was quicker and he was already holding Tommy by his collar, throwing him against the locker.  
  
"Do not tell me what to do." He spoke low, dangerously, his face millimeters away from the other boy's and he saw a flash of fear in Tommy's eyes.  
  
"What the fuck, Billy? You want to get fucking lost in the woods and have a fake funeral?"  
  
The next actions happened too quickly for even Billy to process. He could feel Jonathan reaching for Tommy, he heard Nancy's voice calling out the brunette's name and for a split second he wondered when did she get her, and he could feel his fist meeting the face of the boy he was holding.  
  
Next thing he knew he was being pushed away, a fist flying his own way and he dodged it, marching towards the freckled boy again as he hit him with his left hook, sending the boy back into the lockers. He recovered quickly and kicked Billy in the leg, hearing him scream 'Stay away!' and he guessed it was towards the other boys who might have tried to help him.  
  
The blonde stumbled a bit, allowing for the other boy to hit him in the face by that action. A bitter laugh escaped the blonde's throat as the boy tried to punch him again right after the first punch. But Billy moved away, managing to punch the boy himself instead, making him bend down in his knees as he hit his stomach. He then went to kick him in the stomach, sending him to the ground.  
  
He figured he had enough and he went to wipe his nose, feeling a drip of blood on there and he took a second to look up, being surprised when he found out the two of them managed to move a few feet away from the others.  
  
The boys group standing there, ready for a command to fight and next to them stood all three of the trio. Nancy standing next to Jonathan, holding him back by his sleeve as Steve stood almost protectively in front of them.  
  
It was the few seconds he spared looking at them that sent him falling onto the floor as well when the boy on the ground kicked under his legs. "Oh, fuck off." The blonde then called out as he rolled over quickly, dodging a punch just to send his own fist in Tommy's way.  
  
The two of the boys then fell into some sort of ball of range on the ground. Billy having the upper hand in the fight but the other boy was managing to get a few punches himself. It was definitely different from the last fight the blonde had, which was with Steve.  
  
He was still letting bitter laughs escape every here and there when Tommy hit him, thinking it was hard but it was like a sting to the boy who was too used to beating by now.  
  
But the fight was different in the way that Billy was aware of what he was doing. The last time he was fighting Steve, he was blinded with rage, not fully knowing what he was doing. And now he was also angry, but he would need something else to send him through the edge to truly beat up the boy under him.  
  
The blonde flexed his arms as he looked at the boy under him, both of them breathing heavily. He could feel Tommy wrestling and shifting under him, reaching for him but he blocked him with his hand. "Had enough?" He gritted through his teeth before slowly standing up.  
  
He stood tall, watching the other boy stand up as well, wiping his bloody mouth. Billy was just about to turn away when he heard Tommy muttering something under his breath. "What was that?" He spoke harshly, not knowing if he understood him well.  
  
"I said, go back to your faggot." And Billy was so tired of hearing that word and of listening to Tommy insluting his soulmate.  
  
He knew he should have walked away, Jonathan probably didn't even care what the others called him but Billy did, and so he flew his fist towards the other boy again, this time not caring if he hurts him badly or not.  
  
——  
  
The freckled boy turned out to be a good fighter even after Billy let his anger take over. He would sneak a punch here and there, tried to take control. The boys weren't back on the ground for long when the blonde felt two set of hands pulling him away.  
  
He tried to knock them off but they dragged him away and he snapped his eyes open and saw Tommy being pulled away as well, he could hear shouting somewhere in the background but his ears were ringing.  
  
The blonde could feel someone pressing onto his shoulder, trying to set him in place. He turned his head a little to the side to see who it is, his face forming into a slight surprised frown when he saw Steve just few inches away from him.  
  
He pushed himself away from the taller boy, raising his hand up to wipe the blood running down from his nose, feeling his face swelling and stinging. He then brought his gaze back to Steve who was making his way back to the couple. The blue eyes then found both the girl and the boy staring at him. Nancy looked intrigued and curious while Jonathan just looked a bit shocked.  
  
Before either of them could do or say anything, the principal's voice was echoing through the hallway, calling both Billy and Tommy's names. The blonde sighed, wiping his nose again as he looked down on his bloody hand. He didn't mind blood, he sometimes enjoyed the sight. Made him look alive.  
  
He really didn't want to deal with the principal's bullshit but he knew it would be worse if he walked away. And so he looked to the side, giving the other bloody boy a glance before he started walking towards the principal.  
  
Billy walked the same way he always did. Tall and high, not caring about what anyone else thinks. He just probably learned a little more respect from the boys and a little more admiration from the girls. He didn't understand how it worked, he just beat up a guy and they would still welcome him. But he didn't mind it either, it was what he was used to by now.  
  
Even though a part of him wondered what would Jonathan say to him. _Would he be glad he shut Tommy up? Would he be mad he didn't get to do it himself? Would he ask him why he is getting in trouble?_ He didn't know and as for now, he didn't want to know.  
  
And so he brushed past the boy that occupied his thoughts and walked to the principal office with Tommy right behind him.  
  
As soon as they entered the office, he could see the principal was angered but he was trying his best to keep it hidden and stay professional. Billy almost scoffed when he asked them to sit down and handed them tissues.   
  
Tommy took them immediately, starting to wipe his bloody nose quickly but after a whimper he slowed down. The blonde rolled his eyes at the freckled boy's stupidity and he took a tissue himself, wiping his nose with it. He could feel his forehead being cut open and the blood drying on his cheekbone from where it dripped down, his lip busted open as he could taste blood on his tongue. He didn't mind.  
  
The principal then started talking and the blonde didn't listen to him at all, he just sat in the chair, waiting for it to be over. He heard this schooling multiple times in California, he didn't have to hear it again. It was always the same.  
  
What happened? Who started the fight? Violence isn't the solution. I hope this never happens again.  
  
The boy was kicking his feet against the chair, bobbling his head as he waited for the man to finish. He then spared another look on the boy next to him who kept on trying to clean his face. The blonde could see the other boy's eyes flickering his way and Billy raised his hand, tapping on his left cheek before nodding to the boy, telling him to wipe away the spot he missed.  
  
The other boy went to wipe away the blood from his cheek and nodded slightly back at Billy. Another thing that the blonde didn't understand was how quickly boys would make up and forget about everything. He himself didn't give two shits about being friends with Tommy, but he knew if he hung out with the boys again, they would act as if it never happened.  
  
He didn't know if he would welcome it or despise it. He hadn't decided yet.  
  
"I am going to call your parents so they can pick you up."  
  
"I know where I live, thanks." Billy spat out as soon as the principal closed his mouth. The last thing the blonde wanted right now was for his father to come marching here. He knew he would be angry and he didn't want to deal with it at school. He would much rather deal with it at home. Or not at all.  
  
"I am fine to drive, too." The smallest smug grin formed on Billy's lips after hearing the other boy's words. He was a bit useful after all.   
  
The principal took a second to look at the two boys sitting in front of him berofe leaning back into his chair. "You can leave, I am going to inform your parents about what happened. And I hope it doesn't happen again."  
  
Both of the boys gave the principal a nod, clearly wanting to get this over with just as much as he did. The blonde was the first to stand up and head for the door, being followed by the other boy immediately.   
  
When they were out, Billy spared the boy next to him a look and he caught him looking at him as well. "See you tomorrow at the basketball practise?" The freckled boy questioned, ready to leave as soon as Billy gives him the answer.  
  
The blonde boy eyed Tommy for a second before he gave him a slight nod. He was quite sure he would stop harassing Jonathan after their encounter and he also knew the boys would act more carefully around him, if he chose to hang out with them again. But at the same time, he liked playing basketball with the boys.  
  
And so he agreed, choosing to push the fight back into his mind for the time being, keeping the door to the memory unlocked if Tommy tried to annoy his soulmate again.  
  
——  
  
The blonde just came out of the bathroom where he tried to get rid of any dry blood on his face, looking all over himself in the mirror, finding out that his shirt was a bit ripped at his sleeve.  
  
He didn't care that much about that, it wasn't one of his favorites.  
  
Now the boy was standing next to his locker, throwing the books he was supposed to study from into his backpack. He wasn't planning on studying but he would still always put them on the table in his room, making it seem as if he was studying from them.  
  
He was just putting the biology book into his bag when he noticed movement next to him and he raised his gaze to the source and his eyebrows furrowed almost instantly when he noticed Nancy was standing next to him.  
  
He straightened up a little, his eyes falling onto the girl next to him with a slight hint of curiosity. "Are you lost or something?" He had asked, zipping his bag up to throw it over his shoulder.  
  
The Wheeler girl just watched him, leaning against the locker next to the blonde's. "Why did you do that?" She then asked as she kept on watching him with interest in her eyes.  
  
"Did what?" He had asked, trying his best to sound confused even though he knew exactly what the girl was talking about. He hoped he could have annoy her and she would go away.  
  
"Beat up Tommy." The girl's eyes never left the blonde's face and he felt a little uncomfortable under her gaze. She was the only girl he ever felt uncomfortable talking to. He didn't mind talking to any other girl, only the Wheeler girl.  
  
"Because I wanted to?" He shrugged slightly, turning a bit away from her so he didn't have to face her anymore. Starting to organize the books in his locker, he could still feel her eyes on him.  
  
"Or because you wanted him to shut up about Jonathan?" She challenged him and he knew she wanted him to admit that was exactly what she did. She probably wanted him to have a heart to heart conversation about caring about the boy. He cringed at that thought.  
  
"He sent you or something?" He then asked the girl next to him, narrowing his eyes at her and he could see her almost chuckling at his question.  
  
"No." She shook her head and the boy closed his locker and turned to face the girl again. "I wanted to know for myself." She then continued.  
  
"Aren't you supposed to be smart?" The boy questioned the girl standing next to him."Figure it out." He said before turning around and walking away from the Wheeler girl.  
  
He didn't like the thought of her going to him, asking about Jonathan. He had a feeling she would come around sooner or later but that didn't mean he felt less uncomfortable when it happened. She just made him feel like he could shrink at any moment and he didn't like that.  
  
The blonde put a cigarette into his mouth as soon as he left the school building, lighting it a second later as he walked to his car. He ignored everyone standing in the parking lot, his gaze fixed on his car as he walked.  
  
He didn't want to talk to anyone, he didn't even want to look at anyone. He felt like if anyone talked to him, he would throw a punch at them.  
  
The boy smoked his cigarette, his eyes closed as he let the sun hit his face while he waited for his step-sister. He could feel his face starting to get swollen and more red, becoming more painfull. But he ignored it, feeling almost glad that his face was hurting. It was what he was used to back home. He wondered if this is who he is supposed to be.  
  
A boy smoking in the parking lot alone with his face painting in shades of reds and purples.

  
He stayed like that until he heard his step-sister's voice next to him. "What happened to you?" The blonde squinted his eyes as her voice cut through his own bubble. "What do you think, shitbird?" He said as he took one last drag from his cigarette before throwing it away.  
  
He then got inside his car right after Max did so. He started the engine as he drove away from the school, turning up the radio as he drove. He catched Max looking at him and he turned his head around to look at her, giving her an angered expression, making the girl look away.  
  
——  
  
This was one of the days where Billy really didn't want to go home because he knew his father was waiting inside for him. He knew the principal called home but he didn't know if Susan answered it or if his father was home to answer it.   
  
Either way he knew his father would find out, either from the principal himself or from Susan. He wouldn't blame the woman for telling him, this was his own problem and if she didn't tell his father, she would probably have a problem herself as well.  
  
He parked the car and watched Max get out, him, himself still staying in the car as he thought about what would happen if he just didn't go inside. But he knew that would probably only make the situation worse.  
  
And so after he watched his step-sister disappear into the house before he got out of his own car, making his way to the house.  
  
The boy opened the door, taking a peak inside as he walked in, closing the door behind him quietly. He put the car keys into his pocket as he walked to his room, his eyes settling on his father as soon as he was revelead sitting on the couch in the living room.  
  
The blonde looked around, noticing that the door to Max's room was closed and the TV was on, some channel that his father didn't pay attention to was playing. He stood in the place he stopped at, waiting for his father to do something first.  
  
The older man finally raised his head and his eyes fell onto his son, the man's features hardening instantly. "Did you not understand why we moved here?" The man spoke harshly, making the boy's breathing quicken.  
  
"I did, sir." He replied without any emotion, making sure to stand his ground but still show respect to his father. He knew he had to do that in order to not make him angrier.  
  
"Then why is the principal calling me about you getting into a fight?" The man rose from his seated position and walked towards his son who kept on standing at the same place. The father then went to grab his son's jaw to properly look at the bruised face.  
  
Billy could try to explain that he was defending himself and his soulmate but his father didn't know about his son meeting and spending time with his soulmate. He for sure didn't know who his soulmate was, nor that it was a male. And Billy would try his best to make him keep from finding out. He had a feeling it wouldn't end well for him if his father knew.  
  
There wasn't anything the blonde could say to make his father let him go. He could say he felt like punching the other guy. He could say he started the fight over a girl. He could say it just happened.   
  
But the ending would still be the same.  
  
And so the boy just shrugged, a slap coming his way as soon as his shoulders fell down again. Blood started filling the blonde's mouth, the cut on his mouth getting opened again. He brought his hand up to wipe away his mouth, turning his head back to face his father.  
  
The man stared at his son, coldness and disappointment showing in his eyes. "What would your mother say?" He then said, flipping a switch in his son's mind.  
  
"Don't you dare pull mom into this!" The blonde called out, his eyebrows furrowing in anger as he raised his voice at his father probably for the first time in his life.  
  
The anger that flickered across his father's face suggested danger and Billy only managed to take a quick breath before he was being pushed against the table.  
  
That was when a loud crash noice could be heard and Billy looked behind his shoulder to see Max, standing between her door with glass shattered all around her. The man let go off his son as he looked over his shoulder as well to see the girl looking down at her feet.  
  
"It fell out of my hand, would you believe that?" The girl called out to them, making her way towards the kitchen to grab the broom placed behind the counter, passing them on her way there.  
  
Both of the males just stared at her and Billy took the chance of his father being surprised and quickly brushed past him to just go into his room for a second, grabbing his gym bag and immediately turning to go for the front door.   
  
He looked back on his way to the front door, seeing his father disappear into his study before turning his gaze to Max and the two of them locked eyes for a second. The look in the girl's eyes suggested worriness and pityness.  
  
The boy let out a silent curse as he exited the house. The look in his step-sister's eyes suggested that she either saw or heard him and his father and it must have mean that the girl smashed the glass on purpose to stop her step-father.  
  
The feelings and thoughts in him were all over the place and he felt as if he was going to explode.  
  
Billy drove to the gym the quickest he has ever driven, not even caring if something happens to him.  
  
——  
  
The boy didn't even greet the usual guys he always saw in the gym. They always nodded at each other, exchanged the simple formal chit chats or simply greeted each other, but this time Billy ignored them as he headed straight for the changing room.  
  
His feet didn't work along with his mind. His mind was everywhere but here, yet he found himself standing next to the boxing sack. This time he grabbed the gloves before he started to punch the sack, many faces flashing in his mind as he kept on punching.  
  
He switched places sometimes, doing pull ups, lifting weights and going back to the boxing.  
  
The blonde usually spent from half an hour to one hour in the gym but this time the boy got lost in his mind and lost a track of time since after he finally looked at the clock, he found out he has been working out for two hours.  
  
Billy took a deep breath and let himself lean against the boxing sack, his body was painfully sore and he felt as if he was going to pass out if he continued. He deabated on taking a shot at that but he ended up taking off his gloves in the end.  
  
The boy then walked back into the changing room to take a shower. Two other boys were there and he just looked over them, not even nodding at them. They didn't seem to notice him either. And so the boy just threw his clothes away from his body, grabbing his towel as he headed into the shared showers.  
  
He let out a sigh when he finally turned on the water, stepping under the stream, wanting all his thoughts to be washed away. All the thoughts about his father, his step-sister and his soulmate were making him go mad.  
  
As the water started to hit his face, he could feel stings all over the bruised parts and he let it happen, wanting to feel the pain he caused.  
  
He didn't know how long he had been standing there but he started to turn the water hotter and hotter until he was standing under the stream with the hot water burning his back. He could feel the redness forming all over his back and he turned it to the maximum, wondering if he could just boil under it.  
  
His hand eventually turned off the water and he took his towel to dry himself, walking back to the changing room, he looked into the mirror and didn't even blink when he saw how fucked up he looked.  
  
It wasn't the first time he saw himself like this.  
  
——  
  
When the blonde finally exited the gym, it was already almost getting dark outside and he looked around, exploring his surroundings to see if he can see someone familiar but he didn't see a single person he knew.  
  
The boy then went to throw his gym bag inside his car before he pulled out his cigarette and enjoyed a long smoke. He inhaled every single nicotine deep into his lungs before letting it back out.  
  
He stood there, just leaning against his car, smoking his cigarette with his eyes closed, listening to the sounds of cars passing by, sounds of people talking somewhere in the distance and a dog barking somewhere close to him.  
  
Billy eventually threw the end of his cigarette away and turned around with the intention to get into his car. He then realized he didn't want to go home, he didn't want to face his father. Today was the first time someone stopped Neil from doing whatever he wanted to do and the boy didn't know what to expect when he gets home.  
  
The boy played with his car keys in his hand before placing them back into his pocket as he turned to look at the road ahead of him. He felt like going for a run but he didn't know if it was the best idea since he was wearing jeans, not the tightest pair he owned but still pretty tight.  
  
In the end he decided he didn't care and let his feet lead the way.  
  
The boy exited the town almost immediately, prefering to do his running in the forest's paths than in the actual town. He has been running with no destination in mind for half an hour, trying to push his hardest and run the fastest he ever did even though every muscle in his body was protesting.  
  
He eventually stopped in his tracks and and took a look around to find out he was standing in front of Jonathan's house.  
  
The thought of him going to his soulmate's house without even realizing sent shivers down his spine. A question crossed his mind when he wondered if it was because Jonathan cared for him and he felt safe around him. The blonde immediately threw that thought away.  
  
He was staring at the house in front of him, noticing that there was light coming out from the windows and he wondered who all is inside. He hasn't been to Jonathan's house while his soulmate's mother and brother were there and he wasn't going to change that now.  
  
The boy wondered for a while if he was even going to try to go inside but he decided to go eventually, not wanting to go home, knowing being around his soulmate would calm him down and clear his head.  
  
And so he then went around the house quietly, not wanting to make any noise to alert anyone he was sneaking around to find Jonathan's window.  
  
He finally found the window he was looking for and he was just about to knock on the window when he looked inside and saw the Wheeler girl sitting on the bed, laughing at something Jonathan had said.  
  
The blonde pulled his hand back immediately, taking a step away to hide behind the wall. He was sure they didn't see him. He let himself lean against the wall for a second, sighing softly before he turned to leave again in the exact silence he came to the window.  
  
He looked behind himself as he walked away, seeing the couple kiss, he immediately turned away.  
  
A feeling of loneliness spread to his chest and he gritted his teeth as he realized Jonathan was the only person he had but he wasn't the only person for Jonathan.  
  
The boy started walking away from the house, not having any more strength to run. He had been beaten up today but this was when he truly felt beaten up.  
  
He didn't look back at the house and so he didn't notice the woman standing on the porch, smoking as she watched him.  
  
——  
  
When the boy finally got back to the gym, it was already dark outside, no one really being on the streets anymore. He smoked five cigarettes on his way back and by the time he reached his car to smoke a new one, he was almost out of his cigarettes.  
  
He didn't put any music on as he drove to the house, feeling something he couldn't describe but it was clenching his throat as he thought about the whole day.  
  
The boy parked his car two houses from his own, not wanting for his father to hear the engine and that would happen if he parked his car in front of his house.  
  
Billy wasn't planning on spending the night home tonight, but he needed to get a few things first.  
  
That was why he was sneaking up to a window for the second time in the night. He looked up into the window leading to his room and he could see no one was there but the door was open, the light from the living room shinning into the room.  
  
The boy let out a silent curse as he hid his head to make sure his father wouldn't see him if he happened to pass the room. Billy would never say it out loud but he was scared of what would happen if he just walked through the front door. He knew both Susan and Max were home but he still didn't know what to expect.  
  
He then let out another sign as he walked to the other window, slowly and carefully taking a sneak inside to find Max sitting on her bed, the box with comics in her hand and the door being closed. And so he knocked onto her window slightly, making the girl almost fall off the bed since he scared her.  
  
If this was any other time and he was doing it on purpose, trying to scare her, he would laugh at her and leave. But now he just watched her as she walked towards the window to open it. "What the hell, Billy?"  
  
"Shh. Keep your voice down." He replied instantly, trying to sound as quiet as he could with her still being able to hear him.  
  
"What are you doing?" The girl asked again more quietly now as she stared at her step-brother.  
  
The boy avoided her gaze, looking all around her just so he didn't have to meet her gaze. "I need you to get me something."  
  
"What?" The redhead just sounded confused and almost worried. The blonde really hoped she wasn't worried because the thought of her worrying for him wasn't helping the clenching feeling he already felt.  
  
"I need you to get me a blanket and some change of clothes, just throw it out of my window. You think you can sneak to my room?" He let out quickly, wanting to get it out of himself, not being sure if he would ask her if he kept it in any longer.   
  
"What? Why don't you just come in?" The redhead questioned him, sounding just as confused as she did before.  
  
The boy just shifted on his feet uncomfortably, meeting her eyes for a brief second before looking away again. "Can you just get it for me?" He tried again, holding onto the window as he watched the girl.  
  
The girl was thinking about something, he could basically see the wheels turning around in her head. She still looked confused as she watched him and he saw a flash of something like worry and pity in her gaze again. It made him want to vomit.  
  
"You can just climb up and sleep here if you don't want to go to your room." She eventually let out quietly.  
  
"I don't want your fucking pity." The boy let out, his breathing starting to quicken as he tapped his foot against the ground. The clenching feeling was getting stronger and he could swear he could feel his eyes watering.  
  
"And where are you going to sleep then?" She hit him back with another question.  
  
"In my car. Wouldn't be the first time." He answered easily, lowering his gaze to stare at his boots before raising his head again to look at the girl. She was still standing in the same position, watching him.  
  
She then turned around out of nowhere, opening the door to her room and Billy almost hit his head against the wall at the thought of her calling for his father. But the girl just called out a 'Goodnight' and closed the door after she received a 'Goodnight' back from both her mother and her step-father.  
  
After that the girl walked back to the window, fully opening it before nodding towards the other boy. "Come on."  
  
"What are you doing?" He let out, watching her in slight disbelief.  
  
"They never come to my room after I say goodnight to then. Mom used to check on me before but she doesn't anymore." The redhead started speaking again, more quietly than before. "Your dad never comes to my room either." She then added even more quietly.  
  
The boy took a sharp breath, the non existing hand was squeezing his neck so much he felt as if he was going to choke. "Why?" He then questioned, narrowing his eyes at the girl in front of him.  
  
"Don't make such a big deal out of it, you are sleeping on the floor anyway." The redhead replied and it actually made the boy grin a little. He kept on standing outside for a couple of seconds before he climbed through her window, trying to make it as quiet as he could.  
  
Once he was inside, he closed the window behind him and looked at the girl again and he could see her placing one her of pillows on the floor before she walked to her closet to get him a spare blanket.  
  
He felt a bit overwelmed when she handed him the blanket, he wasn't sure what was happening nor did he know what to say. "Thanks." He eventually managed to get out and it sounded so silent and weak, he almost threw himself out of the window as soon as he said it.  
  
But the girl gave him a small smile before she climbed onto her bed and turned off the lamp that was on until now.  
  
It took the boy a few seconds for his eyes to get used to the dark but once he could see a bit, he took off his jacket and put it over her chair, taking off his boots along with it.  
  
He then placed himself onto the floor, his head hitting the soft pillow as he threw the blanket over him. He shifted a bit, changed his position a few times until he was settled on his side.  
  
The boy then wondered if he should tell his step-sister goodnight but he could only hear her breathing and he decided not to. It was a weird feeling, sleeping on the floor in his step-sister's room.  
  
The thoughts of everything that happened that day started filling his mind again but they were gone once the boy fell asleep thanks to the sounds of the redhead's calm breathing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Team Max!


	7. Envy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two abused boys share a bond they didn't ask for. Becoming close and questioning everything.
> 
> ——
> 
> Or: Since Billy isn't getting the redemption in the show, I am giving him one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for continuing this story!

  
  
envy;  
  
the desire for what another person has.   
  
——  
  
Billy was never a heavy sleeper so once the door to Max's room opened and Susan stepped inside to probably say something just to stop in her tracks and leave the room again. Only when the boy heard the door close, he let his eyes open to take a look around him.  
  
He squinted his eyes when the sunlight hit him and he leaned onto his elbow to looked around the room properly. He could see the girl was still sleeping and he was kind of glad about that, being glad that he doesn't have to talk to her.  
  
Now he just had to be careful not to wake her up. He slowly sat up, pulling the blanket off himself as he stood up carefully and looked over at the girl sleeping in the bed.  
  
The boy tore his gaze away from the girl and stepped over to the chair to take his jacket and his boots, looking over at the alarm clock on the bedside table, noticing his step-sister had still some time to sleep.  
  
Heading to the door to exit the room, checking if the girl is still sleeping, the boy opened the door slowly and carefully left the room, closing the door behind him. He held his things in his hands as he looked around, noticing that Susan was already standing in the kitchen, preparing breakfast.  
  
He tried to go past the kitchen without his step-mother noticing but the woman looked at him almost immediately once he started walking towards his room. "Morning." The woman then said, a soft smile placed on her face.  
  
The boy wondered if the woman was going to ask about where the boy was last night, about why he is sleeping on her daughter's floor or why he was trying to sneak away without her noticing, but she did no such thing.  
  
She only kept her smile on her face as she watched the boy who stopped in his tracks, looking right back at the woman. "Morning." He replied, slowly moving to his room with a slight confusion spreading across his face.  
  
When he finally managed to make it to his room, he closed the door behind him immediately, throwing his things onto his bed as he went to take some different clothes.  
  
The boy then headed towards the shower, spending more time than usual in the shower as he tried to wash away the soreness that was spreading through his whole body.   
  
He then changed into the clothes he grabbed earlier before making his way towards the kitchen. The woman was now sitting at the table, eating the scrambled eggs she made, nodding towards the pan for the boy to take some.  
  
He had thanked her and sat down next to her, both of them eating their meals in somewhat comfortable silence. He wondered what was going through her mind but she didn't give him any hints in her facial expressions and so he just let it go in the end.  
  
Billy was almost done eating when he heard a door open and he could recognize his father's steps even before he came to the view. The married couple exchanged greetings and the boy got 'Good morning' out of himself as well.  
  
A part of him was a bit scared what would his father do but the man just looked between his son and his wife who were sitting by the table, looking comfortable with each other. The boy thought that was what made him just go to the kitchen and grab some breakfast for himself.  
  
By the time the man sat down at the table, his step-sister came out of the room as well, greeting all of them. The blonde watched her in interest as he replied to her greeting before heading to his room, waiting there until he had to go and drive them to school.  
  
——  
  
The boy was walking to his first class, ignoring all his surroundings since he just wanted to get this day over with, he was ready to spend the whole period looking out of the window but a hand tugged onto his arm, pulling him back to the corner of the hallway.  
  
"What the fuck?" He managed to get out in a surprise, being ready to punch the other person but when he turned around to look at the person, he realized it was Jonathan and he let his hands relax.  
  
The brunette let his hand fall down back to his body, looking over at the blonde who raised his eyebrows at him. "Yes?" He then said, waiting for the photographer to say something.  
  
"You are not as stealthy as you think, you know." The brunette then let out, making the blonde almost choke at the thought of his soulmate catching him looking through his window.  
  
"What?" He had asked, trying to sound the most confused he could at the moment, Jonathan caught him a bit off guard but he managed to collect himself quickly.  
  
"My mom saw you last night." The boy just replied simply, eyeing the blonde in front of him. Before the blonde could say something like 'What do you mean?' or 'Your mom is blind.', the brunette continued. "Curly hair, denim jacket, tight jeans and boots." He had said, clearly trying to imitate his mother's voice.  
  
Billy knew there was no point in denying so he just shrugged, furrowing his brows a bit. "So what? Is that illegal or something?" He spat out, chewing at the inside of his lip.  
  
"She asked who you were."  
  
"I figured."  
  
"I told her." The other boy said hesitantly, making the blonde look at him with a puzzled look. "Okay?" He then questioned, preparing to go into his defense mode if Jonathan was going to tell him his mother wanted for them to stop seeing each other.  
  
"No, I mean.." The photographer started quietly, avoiding the blonde's gaze as he looked around them before meeting the blue eyes again. "I told her about you being my soulmate."  
  
The blonde let out a breath, his tongue running over his lip as he stared at Jonathan who looked almost afraid. Like he was expecting Billy to yell at him for telling his mother.  
  
"What did she say?" The taller boy just asked, not knowing what to think right now, he first wanted to know the woman's reaction.  
  
"That she wants to meet you." Jonathan replied and the blonde could feel the brown eyes digging into his soul at how intensively the other boy watched him.  
  
"Gross." He let out, cringing his nose before chuckling softly when the brunette hit his shoulder. "Okay." He then said, surprising even himself at how calm he was after learning Jonathan had told someone about them being soulmates.  
  
He figured the photographer would tell his family sooner or later, he knew how close he was with them and Jonathan himself had told him that he hated lying to his family. So it was no surprise that he finally told his mother after she saw the blonde sneaking around the house.  
  
"Okay." He muttered again, confirming it for both himself and Jonathan who formed a warm smile on his face.  
  
"Okay." The other boy nodded, the smile staying on his face. "She is inviting you for dinner tomorrow. I will give you more details later." The brunette said, earning a hum in agreement from the other boy.  
  
"We are late, come on." The blonde then mumbled, already turning around to walk to the classroom, he could still see the smile playing on Jonathan's lips and it made him want to impress his soulmate's mother just for the brunette's sake.  
  
——  
  
The blonde was standing in front of his closet, staring at all of his clothes as he tried to decide what to wear for the dinner he was invited to. The photographer told him earlier in school to swing by around 7pm and the boy for some reason didn't want to be late.  
  
Jonathan also asked him after three minutes of hesitating if he can tell his brother about the soulmate bond they shared, the other boy agreed eventually, allowing him to tell the young boy but also giving him a warning about him or his family telling someone else.  
  
It wasn't that he was ashamed, frankly Billy would probably beat up anyone that tried to question him on his soulmate or try to shame him for having a male soulmate.  
  
It was more than he didn't want to go around, telling everyone something so private. He wasn't too intimate with much things, but this was one of them. He didn't need all of his soulmate's friends after his ass, controlling every single thing he does.  
  
Max's voice cut through the silent room, making the boy snap out of his thoughts as he turned around to face the other girl. "Hm?" He mumbled, not really being sure what she said because he wasn't paying attention to her.  
  
"I asked if you are trying to burn a hole into that closet by staring at it." The girl replied sarcastially, making the boy scoff a laugh. "If I wanted to have a hole in my closet, there would be one." He just said, taking another step closer to his closet to take out a jacket just to put it back and take out another one.  
  
He chewed the inside of his cheek as he stared at his jackets, trying to decide which one to wear as if it was even important.   
  
"The black one is better." The redhead's voice filled the room and the blonde looked down at the jacket in his hands, noticing his 'Straight to hell' patch inside of the jacket. It brought a small grin onto his face as he remembered how everyone from his California's group of friends got it.  
  
He let his finger explore the fabric of the patch before he looked back up at the girl again. "Did you want something?" He then asked, watching the girl in question since she never came to his room until she wanted something.  
  
"I am heating up dinner from yesterday, I wanted to ask if you want me to leave you some."   
  
"No, thanks." The blonde replied shortly, putting on the black jacket he was holding just a few seconds ago. "I am going out for dinner."  
  
"When are you going to be back?" The girl asked, leaning against the door frame of the boy's room.  
  
"No idea." He spoke again, searching his pockets to see if he has everything he needed. "Why?"  
  
"Just wondering for how long I am going to have the house for myself." The redhead said, a little grin placed on her face as she pushed herself off the doorframe and made her way back to the kitchen.  
  
The boy then grabbed his cigarettes, putting them into his pocket before he himself made his way out of his room as well. Saying goodbye to the girl, he closed the door after leaving the house, still managing to hear his step-sister's goodbye as well.  
  
——  
  
The blonde spent the ride to his soulmate's house nervously tapping onto the streeling wheel, shifting in his seat and realizing that the calmness he felt before about meeting the Byers family was gone.  
  
He didn't know what he was going to say or do. He didn't know what they are expecting him to do. He didn't know what Jonathan was hoping for him to do. He didn't know how they would react to him, he didn't know how they were going to act around him. And he didn't know how he was going to act around them.  
  
Billy didn't get nervous often, barely ever, but right now his nerves were going on full speed and the boy wanted to throw up once he parked his car in front of the familiar house.  
  
He ended up sitting in his car for a minute or two, just staring at the house until he finally got out, straightening his jacket, he slowly began to walk towards the house, looking into the window as sneaky as he could once he was standing at the front porch.  
  
The blue eyes found his soulmate's eyes and he watched Jonathan move towards the door, opening them a second later. "Hey."  
  
Before the blonde even replied, he pulled onto Jonathan's arm to get him out of the house, closing the door behind him. He then looked up at the boy again before finally speaking. "What does your family know about me?" The unspoken question 'About what happened?' hanging in the space between them.  
  
The one thing that was occupying the boy's mind was what Jonathan's family knew about what went down last year. He knew neither of them were around when he found Max with Steve and the other kids, but he was one hundred procent sure someone told them.  
  
He wasn't going to go inside the house if all they would do was judge him.  
  
Plus the bruises on his face weren't helping his case either.   
  
"They know that you moved here, that you are Max's brother, that we spend time together." The brunette started, shrugging slightly before he hesitated for a bit, his eyes meeting the blonde's. "They know what went down here." He then said, more quietly than before.  
  
The blonde took a sharp inhale as he shifted on his feet. This was the first time anyone ever brought it up with him. He never talked about it with Max. He never talked about it with Steve and he definitely never talked about it with Jonathan.  
  
The boy hooked his thumbs over his belt as he swung a bit to the side, nodding towards his car. "I think I am gonna go." He said, a bit more quickly and harshly than he intented.  
  
"Stop." The other boy said, smacking the blonde's shoulder who raised an eyebrow at him. "Just be nice. Don't give off the impression that you want to murder everyone you look at." The brunette continued, his hand reaching for the door handle.  
  
"Ugh." The blonde groaned out loud at the comment, giving Jonathan an innocent grimace as soon as the photographer smacked his arm again. "Fucking hitting me all the time." He muttered under his breath, earning a soft chuckle from the other boy as they entered the house.  
  
——  
  
Billy already told himself before that he has to make a good impression on his soulmate's family, maybe more on his mother than his brother. He felt as if it was really important to Jonathan and the blonde got so used to having him around, he didn't want to fuck it up.  
  
It took him some time to admit to himself that he was used to spending time with Jonathan, that he felt good in his presence, calm and relaxed, he knew it was because of their bond but he had a feeling that maybe, just maybe, it would be the same even without the bond.  
  
The brunette just gave away the feeling of warmth in general. At least Billy saw it that way.  
  
That was why he wasn't so shocked when his blue eyes met another set of brown eyes that were also filled with kidness and warmth.  
  
What did shock him was that after he greeted the woman, trying to sound as nice and charming as possible, the female just gave him a small smile and pulled him into a hug.  
  
It lasted only for a few seconds but the blonde almost choked right there, his whole body going stiff at that motion and he just stood there, not saying anything until the woman pulled away.  
  
He then coughed, trying to hide the fact that she caught him so off guard, trying to hide the hint of sadness in his eyes when he realized how much the hug reminded him of the ones his mother used to give him when he was younger.  
  
The woman either didn't notice or chose to ignore it since the smile was still placed on her face.   
  
She then looked between the two teenagers, Billy looked as if he wanted to turn around and run away and Jonathan looked as if he knew what exactly was going through the blonde's head since he put his hand onto his shoulder, softly pushing him towards the kitchen where the youngest Byers was standing.  
  
The young boy just reached out his hand to greet the blonde and he almost thanked him out loud for not hugging him. He cringed at the thought of the kid hugging him just like the mother did a few seconds ago but he hid any sign of that as he carefully reached for the offered hand, shaking it softly, trying to not use the usual force he did during handshakes.  
  
The kid was almost wearing a small smile and Billy wondered if the photographer told them to just act so fucking nicely or if they were like this all the time.  
  
He then looked around slightly, noticing that Jonathan was standing right next to him and a little thought appeared in Billy's mind. "I didn't bring anything." He let out, surprising even himself at how loud the words sounded when he tried to be quiet.  
  
Before the brunette standing next to him had any chance to asnwer, the woman was waving her hands in the air and shaking her head. "You don't need to bring anything, don't worry." She assured him, before pointing towards the table. "Come on, let's sit down."  
  
Her sons followed her command immediately and Billy felt himself moving along with them, looking over at the table set for four plates. He wondered if he was going to be able to eat something since he felt that he might just vomit everything out.  
  
He watched the youngest Byers sit down and watched his soulmate next opposite him. Jonathan then looked up at the blonde, nodding slightly to the chair next to him and the boy sat down, taking off his jacket he threw it over the chair before straightening up a bit in his position.  
  
"I like your jacket."  
  
The blonde looked over at Will who was watching him with interest in his eyes. "Thanks." He replied, making sure his voice doesn't show any nervousness or harshness. Trying to sound as neutral as he could, with just a little hint of kindness.  
  
The woman was walking towards the table, a bowl in her hands, she placed it down onto the table next to already set up plates. Billy didn't even notice the food on the table before and he was just about to explore it when the woman spoke. "Jonathan wasn't able to tell me what sort of food you like, so I just made some meatloaf with potatoes."  
  
"That's perfectly fine with me, ma'am, I will eat anything." The boy replied, showing her his white teeth as he smiled at her, being rewarded with a slight smile from the woman as well.  
  
The four of them then went to place their portions on their plates, Joyce telling all of them to get a proper amount so they are not hungry later. Billy thought it would be the most awkward dinner in his life but as it turned out, he was wrong.  
  
As they started to eat, they settled into some normal formal conversation, talking about school, Joyce asking how Billy is doing at school and him returning the favour of making coversation by asking Will how he is doíng at school.  
  
Joyce then went to talk about her job a little bit, letting slip a story or two from when Jonathan's was young, earning a laugh from the photographer's soulmate and brother while he himself called out 'Mom!'.  
  
Will went to ask his brother if he had read the new comics he borrowed from Dustin and Billy catching up on the subject and asking what comics he was talking about. The two of them then settled into their own conversations about comics. And Jonathan, who was pleasantly surprised, joining them every here and then while the mother of the two boys just watched them with a hint of smile.  
  
Once they all finished eating and the woman stood up to clean the dishes and put the food away, all of the three boys stood up at the same time with the intention of helping her.  
  
Billy's guess was that they were raised this way and while he, himself was just trying to make a good impression, he still couldn't help but laugh a bit when all three of them went to grab different plates and followed the woman to the kitchen.  
  
Jonathan joined him and when the blonde met his eyes, he saw happiness in them and that was when he realized he didn't feel nervous anymore, he felt good in their presence. And he didn't know what to think about that.  
  
——  
  
After the boys helped the woman clean the dishes, she had asked them if they want something else, saying that she is making tea if anyone wants some. They all ended up saying yes and the mother went to make the tea. The youngest Byers then called out for the two soulmates, telling them to come to his room.  
  
The photographer was leading the way and Billy was following him a little hesitantly, a slight new wave of nerves forming inside of him since he kept thinking about what they are going to do now that they finished dinner.  
  
But Will clearly had already something in mind, comics being spread all over the bed once the two boys entered the room and the blonde found himself sitting on the floor, the Byers brothers by his sides as they talked about comics.  
  
He could feel Jonathan's eyes on him and his gaze left the youngest Byers to look at the older sibling, raising his eyebrows in question at his soulmate. "You are doing good." The brunette mouthed and a feeling of proudness and warmth filled the blonde's body at the praise.   
  
The blonde let the corners of his lips raise up a little before he started paying attention to the younger boy again since he started to bombard him with new set of questions.   
  
A woman's voice echoed through the house, Joyce informing the boys that the tea was ready. They all started to get up from the floor and head back towards the kitchen.  
  
"What's that?" The blonde asked, pointing to the messy table in Will's rooms. Fabrics, stickers and markers were everywhere, as if the young Byers was making something.  
  
"We were making patches earlier." The photographer replied, watching his brother disappear to the hallway already. He then walked towards the table and raised up a few patches to show them to the blonde.  
  
The other boy just hummed as he followed his actions, walking towards the table to look at the patches himself. "Which did you make for yourself?" He then asked, studying the patches in front of him.  
  
"I didn't. I don't know what patch would fit me." The brunette replied honestly.  
  
"Mhm." The blonde nodded slightly before leaning over to grab a small piece of fabric he spotted and a marker, writing something quickly onto the fabric, trying his best to hide what he was doing with his body so Jonathan wouldn't see.  
  
"Here you go." Billy then called out, a playfull grin spreading across his face as he raised his patch up for Jonathan to see, revealing the words 'Pretty boy' he wrote on there. "You are welcome."  
  
"Oh, jesus." The photographer called out, a chuckle escaping his throat as he took the patch and shoved it into his pocket.  
  
"You better wear it, it took me a lot of time." The blonde was now chuckling, noticing that the other boy was laughing along with him as they walked back to the kitchen.  
  
——  
  
Drinking tea with the Byers family turned out to be one of the most calming moments in the blonde's life. He didn't drink tea often, he usually just drank his beer or coffee. He wasn't really expert in tea either but he did tell the woman that it tasted nice and she went to inform him it was some mix of fruits.  
  
They just sat around the table, drinking their tea and having a lazy conversation. It was kind of soothing to Billy's ears.  
  
They then somehow got to the topic of food again and the woman ended up asking the blonde what was his favourite food. "For when you come over next time." She went to add, making both Jonathan and Billy almost choke on their drinks.  
  
The blonde wasn't expecting her to be smiling at him, being kind towards him, making tea for him, hugging him, inviting him over for a second time and he definitely didn't expect her to want to make his favourite food.  
  
"Uhm." The boy let out, his mind running as he tried to remember what food he liked and pick something that could be his favourite. "I don't think I have one." He then said, not being able to figure it out.  
  
"Don't you have something you loved when you were younger? I can tell you that Jonathan could eat pancakes every single day when he was younger." The woman said, laughing softly at the end of her sentence when Will started to nod in agreement.  
  
Billy's memories of his mother cooking started to pop up in his mind and he remembered one specific thing he would always beg for his mother to buy at the store. "I remember that my mom always used to make Steak-umm's when I was little." The boy was slightly surprised at how easy it was to be honest with the woman, he felt as if he had to be and that she would just know if he lied even about this silly thing.  
  
He then got a little afraid, hoping the woman wouldn't ask about his mother, where was she, what happened to her, what was her name, what did she look like?  
  
And the mother of the two boys looked as if she was going to ask something but she was interrupted by both Jonathan's and Will's laughter filling the room.  
  
"Ummm's." The photographer let out again, playfully mocking the blonde and making his brother laugh again. "Hey, shut up." The blonde rolled his eyes, pushing Jonathan's side and using more force than he intended to since the photographer lost his stability and fell down onto the floor.  
  
A horrified look appeared onto the blonde's face, frustration starting to fill his body as the thoughts of him ruining the evening started to pop up in his mind.  
  
He looked over at the boy on the floor, hoping he didn't hit his head or something. But when his gaze finally found Jonathan, he could see that the boy was laughing, his own brother getting down from his chair to tackle the photographer lying on the floor.  
  
A short laughs started to fill the room as Will tickled his brother and both Jonathan's mother and soulmate couldn't help but laugh at the image in front of them.  
  
"No, stop!" The brunette let out between the chuckles and Billy stood up to offer his hand to Jonathan to rescue him from his brother.  
  
He was standing over them, a smile playing on his face as he leaned down slightly, offering his hand to Jonathan whose gaze shifted between his brother and the blonde before the photographer took the offered hand.  
  
Billy was just about to pull the brunette up when he suddenly found himself on the floor next to them, Jonathan pulling him down instead and to the blonde's horror both of the boys were reaching for him, attacking his sides.   
  
"No, no!" He let out, laughing immediately at the ticklish contact. He knew he was ticklish but this was the first time he was tackled down by not one, but two other people who were laughing above him.  
  
"I will knock the teeth out of you head, I swear to god!" He called out, trying to crawl away but he bent over laughing again, not being to able to move properly.  
  
Three male laughters and one female laughter echoed through the whole house as the blonde tried to run away from the brothers without actually hurting them.  
  
——  
  
Once the boys calmed down and climbed off Billy who kept on threating them until they finally let him be, they all stood up from the floor. The photographer was still chuckling softly and the blonde smacked his arm slightly, brushing past him to sit down onto his chair again.  
  
He didn't remember when was the last time he let himself be so comfortable with someone that he would let himself be tickled. It left him wondering why he let the two boys do that. He knew he was comfortable with Jonathan but he didn't expect himself to be comfortable with the small boy as well.  
  
But now that he thought about it, all of the Byers were so similiar to each others, no wonder he felt comfortable around them the same way he felt with Jonathan.  
  
It was kind of scary now that the boy thought about it.  
  
He was sitting by the table again, his hand around the now empty cup as his eyes lazily moved from each member of the Byers family, watching them as they spoke.  
  
Joyce's voice interrupted his dozing off and he turned his head a little to the side to look at her properly. "Sorry?" He questioned, not being quite sure what she said since he wasn't paying attention.  
  
"I asked how did you find out Jonathan was your soulmate?" She had asked again, her eyes settling on the blonde.  
  
Billy gripped onto the mug immediately, shifting in his seat as he avoided the woman's eyes for a few seconds to make sure she wouldn't see the uncomfortablness spreading on his face. He felt as if he was doing well so far and he didn't want to screw it up.  
  
But the boy wasn't quite comfortale with talking about his soulmate, it kind of terrified him. Saying it out loud, talking about it. It made him cringe just thinking about it.  
  
"When we sat together in school." The brunette's voice saved Billy and he let out a little breath, being glad that Jonathan was the one to reply to the woman.  
  
The blonde could just sense that the woman wanted to ask more questions and he didn't want to asnwer any of them. And so he stood up, taking his jacket into his hands as he took the box of cigarettes from it.   
  
"Be right back." He then said, not really paying attention to any of them as he made his way outside, cigarette already in his hand. Once he was outside, he put on his jacket and closed the door behind him, lighting his cigarette and taking a long drag out of it.  
  
It brought him the relief he needed, feeding his addiction always calmed his nerves.  
  
The boy was leaning against the wall, his eyes closed as he listened to his surroundings, hearing some quiet music from the inside of the house.   
  
He was just standing there, enjoying the coldness hitting his face, the smoke filling his lungs and the sounds from the forest echoing around him.   
  
That was until he heard the door open and he opened one of his eyes, taking a peak to see who it was. He expected it to be Jonathan since he had a habit of following Billy everywhere and so the boy was a bit surprised when he saw his soulmate's mother standing there.  
  
"Got a light?" She said, holding her own cigarette in her hand and looking straight at him. The boy reached into his pocket instantly, lighting her cigarette as soon as he found his lighter.  
  
The woman then took a spot next to him, leaving some space between them what the other boy was glad for. They both just stood there for a little while, smoking their cigarettes and enjoying their own moment of peace.  
  
"Do you wish someone else was Jonathan's soulmate?" The boy then asked out of nowhere as he flickered the falling ashes away from his cigarette.  
  
She looked up at him, taking another drag of her cigarette as she stayed silent for a few more seconds. "Jonathan likes you." She then just said.  
  
The boy next to her returned her gaze, feeling small under the woman's gaze and under the weight of her words. "Would be bad if he didn't, wouldn't it?" The blonde replied, shaking his head a little. He could see the corner of her mouth raising a little and he returned the gesture immediately.  
  
He then watched the woman take another drag of her cigarette and he noticed her shivering a bit. It was cold outside and he didn't even think about the woman being cold until now.  
  
The blonde placed the cigarette into his mouth and hooked his thumbs over his jacket, nodding towards the woman standing next to him, asking if she wants his jacket without actually saying it. He somehow couldn't bring himself to say those words and he hoped she would understand.  
  
She did and she shook her head slightly, taking one more drag of her cigarette before placing it into the ashtray. The boy followed her actions and when she opened the door to walk back into the house, he was right behind her.  
  
——  
  
Joyce walked straight back to the kitchen, taking the empty mugs from the table on her way, giving the blonde a small smile before disappearing into the kitchen.  
  
The boy looked around and furrowed his brows a little when he couldn't find the two brothers anywhere. He started to walk down the hallway, the music he heard before getting louder by each step.  
  
When he was near Jonathan's room, he took a peak inside, trying to find out if the boys are there. He was just about to say something to them once he saw them sitting on the bed but all the words disappeared when he watched the two boys.   
  
They were sitting on the bed, jamming their hands and heads to the sound of music, laughing with each other.  
  
That moment was when everything hit Billy. How good this family is, how good their relationships are, how much of a kind persons they all are, how they are happy just like this, listening to music.  
  
How good of a brother Jonathan was and how good of a mother Joyce was.  
  
It made him chew on the inside of his cheek as he took a step away from the door.  
  
The new feelings he didn't want to feel were back and he could feel them eating him alive. All the memories of his mother and the wishes of her being alive. All the memories of him being too much like his father, being the exact opposite of Jonathan. Not being a good brother to Max.  
  
He clenched his fists, his head hitting the wall behind him multiple times as the boy tried to get those thoughts away. He then jumped away when he felt a warm hand on his shoulder and his eyes found Jonathan standing next to him with a worried expression.  
  
"You alright?" The brunette asked, eyeing the blonde curiously as he let his hand fall down from the boy's shoulder.  
  
"Yes." Billy managed to grit through his teeth, flexing his fingers by his sides. "I am tired, I am gonna head home." He then added after a few seconds.  
  
"Oh." The boy next to the blonde let out a surprised sigh and the taller boy almost hit his head again just to get the disappointment in Jonathan's eyes out of his head. "I got us some VHS tapes, I thought we were going to watch some." The photographer then added and looked at the blonde in front of him.  
  
He wanted to continue with his lie of being tired, he wanted to go home but when he looked into the brown and saw the hints disappointment and sadness, he couldn't manage to do that.  
  
"Okay." He then let out, ignoring the way Jonathan's eyes lit up at his words. "It better fucking be a good movie." The boy muttered under his breath, catching a glimpse of Jonathan's eyes before he walked back to the living room.  
  
He was soon followed by all the members of the Byers family and he then found himself sitting on the couch next to Jonathan with Joyce and Will sitting on the other couch.   
  
They were discussing what movie to watch and when to Will's horror, they found out Billy has never seen Ghostbusters before, they decided to go with that.  
  
The blonde was liking the movie even though his facial expressions may have suggested he was bored. But the corners of his lips flew up a couple of times and he did steal a cookie or two that Joyce brought during the movie.  
  
He was focusing on the movie so much so he could ignore all that was happening around him, so he could ignore the happiness and warmth coming from the family around him.  
  
But once the movie was done and both Joyce and Will were yawning, he didn't have any other distraction. And when he watched the woman ruffle her youngest son's hair, he felt some sort of pain in his chest.  
  
"You should go to bed." The woman then said as she looked at Will, giving him a soft and tired smile. "I think we all should." She added with another yawn.  
  
"Yeah. I am gonna head home." The boy repeated the words from earlier, yawn of his own escaping him as he stood up from the couch, straightening his jeans.  
  
"Oh, I thought you were staying over. You shouldn't drive anywhere if you are tired." Joyce said and he could hear and see all her mother insticts kicking in.  
  
"No, it's fine." He quickly shook his head, searching his pockets to make sure he has everything.  
  
"You can sleep over, if you want." The photographer then said and Billy wanted to actually scream. Both Joyce and Jonathan were looking at him with soft expressions and he wondered how quickly he could run away.  
  
The blonde was still quiet and the silence was only broken by Will's voice. "I am going to bed. It was nice meeting you." The boy said, looking at Billy who wondered if his eye was twitching with the frustration he felt inside him.  
  
"You too." He quickly got out, making sure the boy heard it before he disappeared into his room. The blonde and the young boy actually bonded a little over comics and he felt the need to make the boy know he liked talking about that with him.  
  
"I am going to bed too, boys." The woman then stood up, leaning over to squeeze her son's shoulder and the blonde wached how the photographer squeezed the woman's hand as they shared a small smile.  
  
"And you don't go anywere. I am not being responsible for a car crash." She then said, pointing her finger at Billy before giving him a smile as well. "Goodnight, boys."  
  
The blonde was almost choking as he watched her walk away to her own room. He couldn't believe all of the Byers had such an effect on him.  
  
"Well." The brunette's voice then filled the room as he stood up. "Are you risking my mom yelling at both of us if you leave or are you staying?"  
  
"This some blackmailing bullshit." The blonde sighed, running his hand through his hair. "Get away from the couch then." He then added, taking off his jacket as he looked around the room to search if there were any more blankets.  
  
"You want to sleep on this old uncomfrotable couch?" The brunette questioned, raising his eyebrow in a question at the other boy.  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"We can share my bed." The boy then continued, shrugging his shoulders slightly before placing his hands into his pockets. Billy noticed the boy did that when he was nervous.  
  
"Don't you have a girlfriend, pretty boy?" The blonde hit him right back, a playfull smirk playing on his lips as he wiggled his eyebrows at the other boy.  
  
"Oh my god, sleep on the uncomfortable couch for all I care." The boy called out, rubbing his forehead with his hands and Billy could see all the hints of frustration on his face.  
  
"If you don't want to sleep alone you can just say so." The blonde then said suddenly, surprising both of the boys by his words. He remembered how Jonathan didn't want to sleep alone during their trip to Nashville and he wondered if the boy was experiencing the same at home.  
  
"Okay." The brunette let out, using the word the blonde used so often when he didn't know what else to say. The taller boy didn't push it any further and so when Jonathan started walking towards his room, he followed him.  
  
He walked confidently but once the door closed behind them, the frustration was all back and the blonde debated jumping out of the window. He then watched Jonathan kick off his shoes before moving to his closet. "Do you want any clothes to change into?"   
  
The blonde eyed the boy for a few seconds before answering. "Yeah." The brunette then went to look into his closet properly, finding a pair of sweatpants and an oversized shirt, giving it to the other boy.  
  
"Who do you think I am?" The blonde let out as soon as he grabbed onto the shirt, raising an eyebrow at the other boy.  
  
"It's comfortable." Jonathan just shrugged, changing into sweatpants himself. He was rewarded with an annoyed groan from the other boy who kicked off his boots and started changing into the sweatpants he was given.  
  
He placed his things onto Jonathan's chair, taking off the shirt he was wearing, he went to take the oversized shirt and take a proper look at it. "I am not wearing that."  
  
When he looked around at his soulmate, he saw him already changed and sitting on the bed, placing the pillows on the sides where they were supposed to be. "Why is that?" The boy asked, raising his head to look at the blonde and a hint of surprise spread across his face when he found him shirtless.  
  
"It's enough you got me into those sweatpants, I am not ruining my reputation any more." The boy shook his head as he walked towards the bed. He found it more comfortable sleeping without his shirt on anyway. He sometimes slept naked but he felt like Jonathan wouldn't really appreacite that.  
  
"Alright then." The brunette then said quietly as he slid under the covers, yawning slightly as he did so. Billy noticed he was avoiding looking at him and he almost laughed at that realization.  
  
The blonde stayed standing by the bed for a few seconds before he climbed onto it as well, making sure to stay as close to the edge as he could.  
  
"Sharing is caring." He then said, pulling the blanket away from Jonathan to cover himself with it.  
  
"Are you saying that you care about me?"  
  
"No, I am saying that you should give me a fucking blanket." The blonde muttered, holding the blanket tightly when the brunette tried to snatch it away from him.  
  
"You are such a child." His soulmate then laughed softly, standing up again to go to his closet to get another blanket for himself. When he got into the bed for the second time, he turned off the lights on his way and Billy felt the bed shifting under his weight.  
  
The closeness of his soulmate was making it hard to breathe for the boy, the warmth spreading through his body just like all the thoughts about his soulmate's family and his own family were filling his mind.  
  
"Goodnight, Billy."  
  
The sound of Jonathan's tired and soft voice really wasn't helping the battle that the blonde was having inside of himself. The anger and sadness inside him wanted to leave immediately but the want to not disappoint Jonathan was keeping him in place.  
  
"Goodnight." He managed to let out, letting his own eyes close even though he knew he would have a hard time falling asleep tonight.


	8. Reckless

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two abused boys share a bond they didn't ask for. Becoming close and questioning everything.
> 
> ——
> 
> Or: Since Billy isn't getting the redemption in the show, I am giving him one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for continuing this story!

reckless;

careless of consequences.  
  
——  
  
When the blonde woke up, the feeling of loneliness and coldness hit him immediately. He opened his eyes, bringing his hand up to rub his eyes. Looking around, he noticed he was alone in the room, Jonathan nowhere to be found.  
  
The boy sat up slowly, squinting his eyes at the brightness coming from the window. He then got out of the bed, flexing his muscles he walked towards the chair he had his things placed onto.  
  
He got out of the sweatpants he was given in the evening and changed into his own clothes, feeling more like himself once he put on his jeans and his boots.  
  
The boy then opened the door, looking outside to the hallway he noticed it was still quiet, suggesting that most of the people in the house were still sleeping.  
  
He looked around, not being able to see Jonathan anywhere but he heard some noises coming from the kitchen. The boy first made a stop in the bathroom before he made his way to the kitchen.  
  
"Moorning." He purred out once he saw Jonathan standing next to the oven, making what Billy suggested were pancakes. The boy turned around at the sound of the blonde's voice.  
  
"Morning."  
  
The blonde then searched his pockets, finding his cigarettes he made his way outside. He wasn't sure if Joyce ever smoked inside but he didn't mind smoking outside and so he rather always went outside instead of risking the chance to be told not to smoke indoors.  
  
Once he was outside, he noticed the sun was only raising, meaning that it was still early. He hasn't looked at the time and so he raised his hand up for him to look at his watch he was wearing. 7:30am.  
  
The empty spot in the bed felt cold when he woke up and so he guessed Jonathan woke up way earlier than him.   
  
The boy then smoked his cigarette, walking a little around the house as he smoked, noticing that everything was still quiet around him, all he could hear were birds and the sounds of forest.  
  
When he finished smoking, the blonde ended up walking back to the kitchen, feeling that he needs to say goodbye to the other boy before leaving.  
  
He was glad everyone else was still sleeping, meaning he only had to deal with the photographer and not with the whole family.  
  
The blonde was still a little torn inside and he knew if he saw the other two members of the Byers family, he would just want to run away immediately.  
  
He was just about to say his goodbye to the other boy when he noticed the two plates set on the table and his soulmate sitting by the table, clearly waiting for him. He almosted choked at the sight.  
  
His eyes fell onto the pancakes placed on the plates before he looked into the soft brown eyes and he almost cursed out loud as he walked to the table, sitting down opposite the boy.   
  
"I didn't know what you wanted but I figured everyone likes pancakes." The photographer then said as he started to eat his own portion.  
  
"Whatever, man." The blonde let out, trying to avoid Jonathans gaze as he started cutting his pancake, taking in the biggest bites he could since he tried to leave as soon as possible.  
  
"You are going to choke."   
  
"Would put me out of my misery." The boy said without missing a beat, swallowing the pancake he had in his mouth and he finally looked up to meet the brown eyes.  
  
He could see the questions building up in the photographer's mind and the hints of worry in his eyes. He placed down the knife and the fork, his appetite disappearing all of sudden.  
  
The boy then licked his lips as he placed his hands onto the table, rocking back on the chair a little. "You ever feel like running away?" He questioned, looking right at the other boy in front of him.  
  
"Sometimes."  
  
The blonde watched the photographer, narrowing his eyes to find out if he was lying or not. He seemed honest. "Let's go then." He simply said, standing up from his chair.  
  
"Wait, what? Where?"  
  
Jonathan was also standing up but it looked more like he was trying to stop the blonde rather than go with him.  
  
"Away." Billy shurgged slightly, sounding almost angry when he said those words, heading towards the door. He didn't know if Jonathan was following him and he didn't even know if he wanted him to.  
  
A hand tugged on his arm, making him turn around and face the photographer who had worriness written all over his face. "You are not thinking straight, you can't go anywhere like this."  
  
"Watch me." The boy moved away from his soulmate's grip, making another turn towards the door, he opened it with ease and quickly walked towards his car, not wanting to give Jonathan another chance at stopping him.  
  
Of course the other boy followed after him but the blonde was already in his car, searching his pocket for his keys. The brunette was just as quick as him since when Billy was starting the engine, the photographer climed onto the seat next to him.  
  
The blonde turned his head a bit to the side, giving Jonathan a raised eyebrow. "I don't want your lecture about what I should and shouldn't do."  
  
"You wouldn't listen to me anyway."  
  
Billy's gaze stayed on the boy for a few more seconds, watching him buckle in his seatbelt. He took it as a sign the brunette was going with him. And so he placed a cigarette into his mouth, lighting it before driving away from the Byers' house.  
  
——  
  
The blonde didn't know where he was going and he didn't even care, he just drove, watching the road disappear in front of him. The boy next to him stayed quiet the whole time, just watching the blonde next to him. Billy could feel the brown eyes on him.  
  
He could literally sense the worriness from Jonathan, he could feel him trying to search anything in his facial expressions or in his eyes. He could feel how close he was and how the warmth from him was spreading through the car.  
  
He tried to fight it as much as he could, not wanting to be calm, he wanted to be angry again. He wanted to be reckless like back in California, he didn't want to think about someone else and their feelings.  
  
Billy wasn't paying attention to anything but the road ahead, not realizing that he was speeding up more than usual.  
  
The boy didn't look at the brunette sitting next to him through the whole ride, he felt as if meeting his eyes would make him stop whatever he was doing and turn back around to Hawkins and he didn't want that.  
  
When he finally gazed over at the other boy, it was because the brunette finally spoke, pointing to the mirror to let Billy know a police car is right after them, clearly signaling for them to pull over.  
  
A dangerous smirk spread over the blonde's face as he placed his foot onto the gas other than on the brake, making the car go even faster that it was already going.  
  
"Billy! Seriously?"  
  
The blonde didn't pay him any attention, his eyes being glued to the mirror, watching the police car that was following him. He speeded up more, taking the left turn since he noticed a sign telling him they were heading to a city.  
  
He knew he could shake the police off in the city, it wouldn't be his first time. He just needed to be quick.  
  
"Come on, Billy! Just pull over!" The brunette clearly didn't support Billy's actions and the blonde looked at him for a spare second but didn't stop.  
  
He was going full speed now as he turned to left and right and left again and right, changing the direction two times and he knew he had put more space between him and the police chasing them, they were left in distance but he could still see them.  
  
He needed to lose them completely and so he turned the steering wheel, going right to the opposite side of the trafic as he avoided two cars before taking a sharp left turn, ignoring all of Jonathan's 'Stop!' and 'Billy!'.  
  
The police car was finally nowhere to be seen and a dangerous smile was spreading on the blonde's face. "Yeah! That was a close one, huh?" He called out, looking a bit to the side and he met Jonathan's eyes, he saw the strange look in his eyes and he almost scoffed.  
  
The photographer haven't seen the blonde like this, angry, reckless and not caring about anything. The blonde knew he was a stranger in Jonathan's eyes right now but he didn't care.  
  
He told himself the boy chose to follow him, very well knowing Billy wasn't in the right head space for a normal road trip.  
  
The blonde eventually drifted his car into a parking lot next to a mall, hiding his car behind a bigger truck. He didn't know where exactly they were but it wasn't important.  
  
He then got out immediately, leaning against the car to lit his cigarette. The other boy stayed sitting in the car.  
  
——  
  
He just stood here, smoking, looking around for a few minutes, enjoying the feeling of being somewhere where no one knows him.  
  
Jonathan was still sitting in the car, being way too quiet for the blonde's liking. That was why he bent over to look at him through the window, smacking his hand against the hood of the car. "You just gonna sit here all day?"  
  
The brunette turned to look at him and they stayed like that for almost a minute, just staring at each other as if they were trying to see who looks away first.  
  
Their gaze was broken when the photographer unbuckled his seatbelt and got out of the car, taking his bag with him. "When did you even grab that?" The blonde then said when he found Jonathan standing next to him. He didn't notice Jonathan brought some things with him since he just got out of the house in a matter of seconds.  
  
"When I was chasing after you. I doubt you have your waller with you."  
  
Billy pushed his side slightly after he realized his soulmate was right once again. He didn't bring anything with him, he only had cigarettes and few dollars placed somewhere in his pockets.  
  
He was just about to ask what they are going to do when he heard Jonathan's voice next to his ear. "We could have gotten arrested."  
  
"Well, we didn't, did we?" The boy threw his hands around, dramatically rolling his eyes before laughing softly when the brunette smacked his shoulder while calling out. "I am serious!"  
  
"Relax, pretty boy. You gotta live a little." He then said, reaching for Jonathan's hair to ruffle them, earning an annoyed groan from the other boy. He knew the brunette got always a little annoyed when he did that, he knew it made him seem like a little kid but Billy liked annoying Jonathan and so he always did exactly that.  
  
"Any shorter and you'd probably fade out of existence." He would then always say, earning either a middle finger, an eye roll or a smack to his shoulder. This time it was Jonathan taking out a notebook from his bag and hitting the blonde's head with it. Not enough to make it hurt but enough to make Billy feel it.  
  
"Violence doesn't solve anything." The blonde said, a playfull smirk playing on his face as he watched the brunette in front of him get frustrated.  
  
"Oh my god." The photographed sighed in annoyence and the blonde knew he won, laughing softly when he managed to annoy the other boy again. It became sort of a hobby for him.  
  
Jonathan never stayed annoyed for long since everytime Billy managed to get him annoyed or frustared, he would then follow the brunette everywhere until he started talking to him again.  
  
That was also what was happening right now when Jonathan took off towards the mall, the blonde going right after him.  
  
——  
  
Going to the mall ended up being a decision the brunette later regretted since once he entered the shop and headed straight to the supermarket to get something for himself, it became another place where Bily could annoy him.  
  
"Water are you doing?"  
  
"Are you cereal?"  
  
"Aren't you glad you meat me?"  
  
"Cheer up, honey."  
  
"Are you going nuts?"  
  
"This is eggcelent."  
  
"You are so peasful."  
  
  
"How long have we bean here?"  
  
Each time he would call something out, he would wave the object right in front of Jonathan's face, laughing at his own stupid jokes. The other boy would either ignore him, or try to ignore him, he would tell him to stop but a hint o smile would be showing on his face, he would roll his eyes or laugh silently.  
  
After the blonde placed the bag of frozen beans back into the freezer, he turned back to look at Jonathan who had a smile playing on his face. "And enough."  
  
Billy nodded as he followed him to the cash register, thinking about how easy it was to let the facade he spent years building up, down around Jonathan. He knew it was because of how the boy was affecting him, their bond affecting him, but it still surprised him sometimes.  
  
The last time he joked like this with someone out in the public, he was way younger with the boys back in California. He once or twice let himself joke around Max and even thought he felt as if their relationship was becoming better again, more civil, he still didn't fully relax around her.  
  
He noticed it only happened with the members of the Byers family and Jonathan himself.   
  
The more he thought about it, the more he was trying to put the facade back up, trying to go back to what he was used to. He didn't like changes and he definitely wasn't going to be going around Hawkins, laughing around with the boy in the public.  
  
But now they were somewhere where no one knew them, not even knowing where they were.  
  
And so the blonde decided to just let go and see what comes his way until they have to go back.  
  
——  
  
The first thing that Jonathan headed to do was to call his mother, telling her Billy forgot he had to do something and he went along with him. The brunette later asked if his soulmate wants to call home as well and when the blonde shook his head, they left the payphones.  
  
This day away in a city was different from their pasts trips. Usually they would always end up in a diner, stuffing their faces, then exploring the city, just having fun. But this time when Jonathan tried to suggest something, the other boy would just shrug. He wasn't talking much to the brunette and the photographer was smarter not to push him.  
  
And so they were just wandering around the city, Billy smoking an entire packet of cigarettes and Jonathan taking pictures of anything that caught his eye.  
  
Usually the two of them would stay out in the open, staying around the place the blonde parked the car, not wanting to get lost.  
  
But this time Billy wandered to the dark corners, to the lonely streets, under bridges, to lonely parks. The photographer always followed him and the blonde had a feeling he was following him not because he wanted to go with him, but because he wanted to make sure he was okay.  
  
The thoughts about how kind and better the other boy was were back in Billy's mind and the boy felt frustration building up inside him again.  
  
A part of him was glad that Jonathan decided to come by because it meant he wasn't completely alone in this strange city. But a part of him just wanted to get lost.  
  
The two boys walked side by side in silence, Jonathan had tried to make a conversation but the other boy just wouldn't comply. The blonde could sense that the smaller boy next to him was frustared but he didn't say anything.  
  
That was another thing that was making the blonde get angry over. He could sense everything from Jonathan, just like he knew the brunette could sense it from him. But the boy never said anything, leaving Billy in plain guesses.  
  
"You make me so angry. It's remarkable." He let out quietly, playing with one of the last cigarettes he had.  
  
"I didn't even say anything!" The other boy was quick to reply, staring at the blonde almost in shock.  
  
"Yet here I am, boiling with rage." The blonde didn't really mean what he was saying and they both knew that, yet Jonathan took it upon himself to continue this conversation and take things into his own hands.  
  
"You are acting like a different person."  
  
The blonde let out a bitter laugh at the photographer's words and before he could say anything, the brunette continued. "I have never seen you like this. I have seen you angry but I have never seen you be so.." The boy paused for a while as if he was trying to find the right words. "So quiet, passive aggressive, so uneasy looking. It seems like you are dozed off somewhere, not even knowing where you are."  
  
"Look at you and your big words."  
  
The brunette sighed as he stopped in his tracks, the boy walking beside him stopping as well as if it was a reflex. "I am trying to have a serious conversation with you."  
  
"And I am trying to avoid it."  
  
Jonathan seemed to stop for another few seconds, just watching the boy standing next to him before he spoke again. "Did something happen?"  
  
The question hit Billy unprepared and surprised, making him feel uneasy as he took a deep breath. "No."  
  
"You can talk to me."  
  
"Gross."  
  
Another sigh left the photographer's body as he started to walk again, soon being joined by the blonde who quickly changed the topic before Jonathan could continue. "Why aren't you with Nancy?"  
  
"Nancy doesn't need someone watching over." The boy let out immediately, the 'Like you do' being left unsaid in the air.  
  
The blonde chose to ignore the remark, noticing the frustration in Jonathan's voice. "How are things between you two anyway?" He then asked, being actually interested in this topic since the two boys never really talked about their love lives.  
  
"We are fine, I don't know?"  
  
"You don't know?"  
  
"No, well..we are fine." The brunette was frowning slightly and Billy knew he wasn't very good at talking about this but he understood what he was trying to say.  
  
"You love her?" He then asked, gazing over at the other boy who seemed to inhale a sharp breath.  
  
"It's hard not to love Nancy." Was the reply he got and he decided not to push that exact matter anymore.  
  
"You guys look good together." He then said, being genuinely honest. He saw them around almost all the time and they just fit together nicely. Even though Billy noticed he could place the Wheeler girl next to anyone and they would look good together.  
  
But the boy next to him scoffed a bit. "It's a bit of a cliche, don't you think? The nerdy girl falls in love with the popular heartbreaker when a lonely outsider comes by and she ends up with him instead."  
  
"I don't know, man. I don't know shit about those love stories. It's bullshit anyway."  
  
The photographer ran a hand through his hair as they continued walking side by side, neither of them noticing they were slowing down their pace.  
  
"I don't think it matters who is who." The blonde then started speaking again, bringing the cigarette he was holding up to his lips. "As long as you are happy and shit." He said as he lit his cigarette.  
  
——  
  
The two of them continued walking, reaching yet another abandoned street. Only this time people were actually seen around. Billy immediately noticed what this street was used for.

Homeless people finding shelter here, drug addicts finding drug dealers here, angry teenagers running away from their families.   
  
Back in California even he himself often wandered to the so called Southside in different cities. A place for criminals, outsiders, fuck ups and addicts to live in. He was no stranger to those corners.  
  
His eyes instantly settled on a group of boys spraypaiting a wall before they shifted to the boy next to him who was pulling his sleeve. "What?"  
  
"What are you planning?"  
  
The blonde just shrugged as he started to walk to the group of boys he was watching a second ago. They seemed to be around the same age as him.   
  
Once he reached them with Jonathan right behind him, he pulled out his last cigarette, nodding towards the boys who noticed them. "Got a light?" He said, even though he had his own placed in his pocket.  
  
One of the boys reached for his lighter and lighted the boy's cigarette who thanked him before taking a drag from it. He could see his soulmate from the corner of his eye and he could sense Jonathan wanted to be anywhere but here.  
  
"Never seen you here before." Another boy from the group said and Billy noticed he was the one holding the spray can.  
  
"Never been here before." The blonde replied, blowing out the smoke he had in his mouth.   
  
"Wanted to a catch a break." He then said, earning a numerous nods towards him, his guess of them running away just like him was being confirmed.  
  
"Your folks giving you shit?"  
  
"Which aren't?" He just replied, earning a bitter laugh from some of the boys. This is where the blonde felt like himself, surrounded by angered teenagers just like him.  
  
But this time Jonathan was with him and he felt as if he just couldn't ignore him. "My escort." He said, nodding towards Jonathan who hesitatedly nodded to the boys, giving them an unsure half grin.  
  
"You guys want to join?" One of the boys then said, taking a step back to reveal the spray cans placed on the ground.  
  
The blonde nodded slightly, a cigarette placed in his mouth as he took the offered can, looking over at Jonathan who just shook his head and raised his camera instead, telling him he will rather take pictures than spray paint.  
  
The boy then took a few steps back to look around at the walls, not really knowing what he is supposed to draw or write.  
  
He could see numerous of angry faces painted on the walls, a few drawings that he didn't recognize what they could be, guessing that they were just drafts of imagination.  
  
He could also see a lot of words all over the place.  
  
 **'Fuck you.'**  
  
 **'No.'**  
  
 **'My dad can suck my dick.'**  
  
 **'School is brainwashing us.'**  
  
 **'You suck.'**  
  
 **'I hate you.'**  
  
The boy shook the spray can, not being quite sure what to write or draw. "Just do the first thing that comes to your mind." One of the boys next to him said and Billy watched him spray a few words onto the wall in front of him. **'Everyone is fucked up.'**  
  
The blonde then took a step back as he shook the can again, following the instructions and writing the first thing that came into his mind. It was his first time doing it and the paint was all over his fingers and he was almost choking at how bad it smelled but he finished eventually.  
  
Looking over at the wall in front of him, he threw the can away to the pile next to his right side before he wiped his nose with his sleeve.  
  
 **'My dad sucks.'**  
  
He could feel Jonathan right behind him, his hand hovering over his shoulder, it made Billy shift a bit and he moved away, taking a blunt that was offered to him.  
  
It wasn't his first time smoking weed but it has been quite a while since he had it as well. He filled his lungs before letting the smoke out, ready to pass it over to someone.  
  
He looked at his soulmate again, raising his hand towards him to offer him the blunt. He watched Jonathan stare at it for a second or two before he shook his head.  
  
Once again the brunette was showing him he was the one responsible between the two of them. That he was better than him, that he was smarter than him.  
  
Billy just shifted his gaze back to the boys again, taking another drag of the blunt himself before he passed it on.  
  
He wanted all of his thoughts gone from his mind, all of the feelings he was feeling to go away.  
  
——  
  
The two of them then stayed with the group of boys for some time, tagging along with them and after some time, Jonathan didn't look so uncomfortable anymore.  
  
They watched them spray paint and tag the doors of buildings, windows, anything. Billy joined them here and there, the brunette joining them once as well. Writing just 'Should I stay or should I go' on one broken window.   
  
Billy patted his back and the boys cheered that the brunette finally joined them.  
  
The boys smoked another blunt, offering it to the two soulmates. Billy took it once again, offering it to the brunette who shook his head just as before. He didn't press it and passed it to the other boys instead.  
  
They explored abandoned houses that looked as if they would fall apart at any moment, the blonde making the brunette go along with them. The boys would start throwing firecrackers everywhere, making the curtains get on fire. One of the firecracker would land too closely to Jonathan who would later punch Billy's shoulder, telling him how stupid and dangerous this was.  
  
They eventually went to an abandoned parking lot with them, watching as they changed places in the car they used to show off their drifing skills.  
  
After the blonde was challenged to show off what he had in him, he gladly agreed and placed himself behind the steerling wheel.  
  
He felt good as he drove the car, showing off in front of the boys. His mind was blank and he knew it was because of the weed but he didn't care. He felt free and he enjoyed it at least for the time being.  
  
The group of boys would continue wandering around the city, doing what they probably did all the time, and Billy would normally join them, not caring about what is going to happen, but this time he had his soulmate with him.  
  
And so before he agreed to come along with the boys, there was a tug on his shoulder and the boy turned around. "It's getting late, shouldn't we head home?"  
  
The blonde stopped in his tracks, clicking his tongue as he thought what would happen if he stayed and what would happen if he went back.  
  
If he stayed, he wouldn't have to care about anything. He would just forget about everything and explore a city he didn't know the name of.  
  
If he went home, he would have to face his father, he would have to go back to his house, back to school.  
  
Everything in him wanted to stay but Jonathan's worried face was making him want to leave.  
  
He knew if he just went alone, he would have probably stayed. But he just couldn't stay if that meant Jonathan would look at him like he was a complete stranger.  
  
He swore under his breath as he nodded slightly. The two of them exchanged their goodbyes with the boys, asking for directions before they headed the way they were told to go.  
  
As they turned away from the boys and started walking, he could hear the brunette's voice again. "Thanks."  
  
"For?" The blonde mumbled, his hands in the pockets of his jacket as he walked.  
  
"Leaving. I saw it in your eyes that you wanted to stay." Jonathan's voice was quiet and soft as he spoke and it made the other boy cringe.  
  
"Whatever." The blonde just shrugged, searching his pockets just to find out that he had no more cigarettes. He threw the empty box away before kicking into it, keeping it in front of him so he could keep kicking it.  
  
The other boy stayed silent for a little while and they just walked next to each other. That was until they reached a alley that lead nowhere. Jonathan kept on looking around, going to the left just to come back and go back to the right.  
  
Billy just leaned against the wall as he waited for the other boy to solve their problem. He wasn't very focused anyway, the weed in his system was affecting his body.  
  
He watched the boy sigh frustratedly as he went to a man smoking outside what seemed to be his apartment buidling, he figured the boy was asking for directions.  
  
The blonde got bored of waiting for the brunette and he looked up, noticing the stairs at the side of the building that lead to the fire escape. The boy hooked his hands onto one of the stairs, lifting himself up as he swung his legs.  
  
He went to climb up the stairs, trying to pull himself up the most he could, using his legs for support. He was trying to reach as far as he could. Looking at the ground beneath him, he noticed it was quite far away and he held onto the metal as he looked over, watching the surroundings around him.  
  
Jonathan came to his view and he waved at him, signalising for him to come down and come to him. The boy figured he got the directions he needed.  
  
He swung his legs one more time, trying to pull up once more before he would jump down onto the ground. But he didn't get his grip on the metal the way he intended to, making his hand slip. The boy tried to hold back with his other hand as he tried to hook his feet against the metal as well.  
  
But his foot slipped as well and he tried to pull up with his one hand, finding that the weed in his system was making him weak and dizzy.  
  
His hand failed him as well and he could hear Jonathan shouting his name just before his head hit the ground and his eyes fell into the darkness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry! <3


	9. Apology

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two abused boys share a bond they didn't ask for. Becoming close and questioning everything.
> 
> ——
> 
> Or: Since Billy isn't getting the redemption in the show, I am giving him one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for continuing this story!
> 
> This chapter is full on angst and I was really sad while writing it, so good luck haha.

apology;  
  
a regretful acknowledgement of an offence or failure.  
  
——  
  
The boy opened his eyes slowly, his eyelids feeling heavy as the light hit his eyes, he squinted them, closing his eyes again as he groaned in pain.  
  
"Oh! Thank god you are awake."  
  
The blonde opened his eyes once again, gazing to the source of the voice, finally having a look around to see where he was. "What the fuck?" He let out once he realized he is sitting in his car with Jonathan driving.  
  
His hand flew up to touch his head, remembering what happened. He looked back at his fingers, a sigh of slight relief leaving his body when he found out there is no blood on them.  
  
He then looked back over at the boy sitting in the driver's seat. "Why are we in my car and why are you driving my car?" He didn't like the idea of someone else driving his car, especially now when someone else had already driven it before.  
  
"Because I needed to get you home somehow, you dumbass."  
  
He could tell from Jonathan's tone that the brunette next to him was mad at him and Billy wondered if he had carried him into the car himself.  
  
"How did you get me here?"  
  
"The guy I was talking to helped me carry you and find your car." The boy let out, sounding more calmer now.  
  
The blonde nodded slightly as he touched his head again. It was hurting a bit but nothing too bad, he had been through worse.  
  
"I couldn't take you to a hospital. You have weed in your system and I didn't know if they would lock you up or something." Jonathan then said, sounding stressed and worried. It sent shivers down the blonde's back as he shifted in his position.  
  
His eyelids still felt heavy and he leaned his head against the car window. "I am tired." He mumbled, closing his eyes as he listened to the engine.  
  
"We are close to Hawkins, just hold on." The boy next to him let out and the blonde could feel his hand squeezing around his arm. He just let out a quiet 'Mhm' as he stayed leaning against the window.  
  
The boy was half asleep by the time Jonathan parked the car in front of the Byers' house. The blonde felt his head falling down slowly and his arms and legs being weak as the brunette tried to get him out of the car.  
  
"Come on, work with me here." The photographer pleaded, taking the blonde's hands so he could make him stand up.  
  
"Just let me sleep." The boy mumbled as he allowed himself to stand up, leaning against the other boy a bit when his legs failed him.  
  
The brunette shook his shoulders harshly, making the blonde open his eyes and stare into the brown eyes in front of him.  
  
"I need to check on you, then you can sleep, okay?"  
  
"Fine." The blonde let out, feeling how the tiredness filled his body. He was sure both the weed and the hit to the head had something to do with it.  
  
He was leaning against the other boy a bit as they walked into the house together. He was trying to walk the best he could on his own but Jonathan's hand was still there, supporting him.  
  
As soon as they stepped into the house, a woman's voice could be heard and he almost used all of his remaining strength to turn around and leave but Jonathan's hand was still there, keeping him in place.  
  
"Everything okay?" The woman said as soon as she saw the blonde, seeing how exhausted the boy looked.  
  
"He fell and hit his head." The boy next to him replied and Billy finally looked at the woman, trying to give her one of his best grins but failing.  
  
Joyce stepped closer to the boys, looking ove both of them before she placed her hands on both sides of the blonde's cheeks who flinched at the touch but the woman paid no attention as she lowered his head to examine it.  
  
"What year is it?" She then asked, letting go of his head.  
  
"1985."  
  
"Who is the president?"  
  
"Ronald Reagan."  
  
"Where are you now?"  
  
"Hawkins, Indiana. Are we done?" The boy fought the urge to roll his eyes at her questions. "I am fine, just tired." He then mumbled as a yawn came over him.  
  
"Just get him to bed, if we notice anything happening, we will take him to a hospital." The woman then said, looking at her son who nodded slightly, patting the blonde's back as he started walking towards his room, dragging the blonde along with him.  
  
——  
  
When the blonde woke up for the second time, he found himself in a bed, wrapped in a blanket. The boy sat up slowly, looking over the room he noticed how dark it was, seeing that the curtains were closed.  
  
He yawned, bringing his hand to his face to rub his eyes, looking over to his side when he heard movements next to him, seeing Jonathan sitting in his chair with a notebook in his hands.  
  
The boy took the blanket away from himself and threw his legs over the bed, sitting on the egde of the bed, his gaze fixed at the brunette. "What time is it?"  
  
"Around five. You only slept for a few hours."  
  
The blonde nodded slightly, looking down at his bare feet, realizing that both his boots and his jacket were missing from his body. "You put me to bed?" He let out surprisedly, looking over the room again as a try to find his clothes, finding them placed next to the bed.  
  
"Well, tell me what else was I supposed to do? Was I supposed to leave you there? On the ground? Huh?"  
  
Billy noticed that the other boy's voice was harsh now and he frowned a little bit at the change of the tone. "You should have, at least you wouldn't be so fucking pissy now."  
  
"Pissy?" The boy in front of him stood up, throwing the notebook back onto the chair. "You are right, I am pissed off!"  
  
"Ugh." The blonde let out at the loudness of the boy's voice, rubbing the sides of his forehead. He moved over the bed to grab his boots and jacket, throwing them next to him as he started to put on his boots.  
  
"Do you not understand what could have happened? You could have really hurt yourself, you could have get a head concussion or something!"  
  
"I am fine, mom." The blonde spat out mockingly, not wanting to listen to another one of Jonathan's lectures.  
  
"This is serious shit, you could have died, do you not realize that?" The brunette was standing with his hands crossed, staring at the boy in front of him.  
  
"Would have some peace finally." The blonde snickered, putting on his other boot before stretching his arms.  
  
"This is not fucking funny."  
  
The boy stood up from the bed, his gaze fixed at Jonathan's harsh facial expressions. He had seen the other boy angry before but now it seemed as if he could even punch Billy. _Fun.  
_  
"Alright, alriiiiight." He let out, taking the jacket into his hand, he noticed the other boy was now closer to him.  
  
"Why are you not being careful?" The brunette continued on pressing the subject and the blonde was getting a proper headache.  
  
"Oh my god, would you stop?" He then said, throwing his hands around in frustration as an annoyed groan escaped his throat. But all the frustration disappeared after seeing how the boy in front of him slightly dodged to the side, raising his hand in front of his face as a reflex.  
  
The blonde let his arms fall to his sides as he stared in disbelief at the other boy. "Are you fucking serious?" He let out, sounding way quieter and softer than usual but he didn't even care at the moment. "Do you think that I would just fucking hit you?" He added, holding onto his jacket tightly.  
  
"No! No..but I just.." The brunette was quick to assure him, raising his own hand up as he tried to catch onto the blonde's arm but the other boy quickly moved away.  
  
"I see." The blonde gritted through his teeth, not being able to believe what was happening. How could Jonathan think he would throw away all those weeks of being friends with him? How could he raise a hand at his own soulmate?  
  
He brushed past the boy, stopping for a split second when he felt a hand reaching for his shoulder and the photographer's voice echoing all over the room. "No, stay."  
  
The blonde shut his eyes as he gritted his teeth again, snatching himself away from the brunette's grip. "Don't touch me." He said harshly before quickly exiting his soulmate's room and the house.  
  
——  
  
The ride to the house was too short for Billy's own liking. He was hoping his father wasn't home, wasn't waiting for him. All he wanted to do at this point was just go home, take a long shower and go back to bed, he didn't have energy to do anything.  
  
His head was still hurting a bit, he felt exhausted and now he felt sad as well. He couldn't believe Jonathan thought he would just hit him like that. The blonde knew he was angry a lot and that he had a short temper but he had boundaries, he had people he would never touch. Both Max and Jonathan being one of them.  
  
The boy saw his father's car parked in front of the house and he just hoped it didn't mean anything, that the man could be somewhere and not be home.  
  
But as soon as he opened the door, his gaze fell onto the male figure sitting by the dining table. The blonde took a deep breath as he entered the house quietly, closing the door behind him gently.  
  
He knew his father was aware of his presence, he could try being as quiet as possible but it was clear the man was sitting there, expecting him.  
  
Billy didn't dare to move yet, his eyes searching the room to see if any of the females were present. He didn't see either of them to his luck. The boy then finally gathered the courage to look at his father, being met with an angered gaze.  
  
He watched his father stand up and lean against the table. "Where were you?"  
  
The cold tone of his father's voice sent shivers down to Billy's back and he wanted to look away so badly but he knew better. "I was at a friend's house. Lost track of time. I am sorry, sir." The blonde knew there wasn't any excuse he could say that would make his father back off. He knew his apology didn't mean anything but he tried it, if just maybe, this time it would work.  
  
"Lost a track of time?" The man said, rasing his eyebrow at his son as he crossed his arms. "You are so irresponsible." He then spat out harshly, almost making the boy flinch.  
  
"I am sorry, sir." The boy repeated, sounding more quiet now. He was still standing in the same spot and he wanted to just sneak into his room, wanted to get this over with.  
  
"Two simple things I ask of you, Billy! Just two!" The man spoke, getting closer to the boy as his angered gaze bore into his son. "Respect and responsibility." He gritted out, standing over the blonde.  
  
Billy's breathing quickened again as he watched his father approach him, wating for a slap, a punch, something, but nothing was coming so far. It was almost confusing.  
  
The boy stayed quiet, not knowing what to say and he felt as if repeating the apology would be pointless. He didn't truly mean it anyway and his father very well knew it.  
  
"Is that so hard to follow? Huh!" The man spat out, his hand hitting the wall next to the blonde's head. The boy flinched at the sudden movement and blinked a few times before he was able to look at his father again.  
  
"Answer me, boy!"  
  
"No." The younger male gritted out through his shaky breaths. He could feel himself fill up with frustration, anger and sadness all at once.  
  
There was a hand on his chest, grabbing onto his shirt as the man pulled the boy closer to himself. "No what?"  
  
"No, sir." The blonde almost spat out back at his father, he was getting so done with these encounters. Sometimes he wished his dad would just beat everything out on him for good and Billy would have finally some peace.  
  
The hand from his shirt was gone but the man was still standing too close to the blonde. "Now where were you?"  
  
"I told you already, at a friend's house."  
  
"What friend?" His father's face still showed anger and the blonde just knew he couldn't tell him. He would do his research, he would find Jonathan, he would figure out him and Billy were soulmates, he couldn't allow that. Not if he could help it.  
  
"None of your business." The blonde let out, moving to the side the moment he said it because he expected the hand that was flying his way immediately.  
  
He managed to dodge it but what he didn't expect was his father backhanding him instead, hitting him right into the nose.  
  
The blonde felt blood pouring out from his nose immediately and he stepped back a bit, bringing his hand up to wipe away the blood.  
  
Only then he looked back at his father, meeting the angry eyes with matching ones.  
  
"Neil! I need your help, please?" A woman's voice cut through the house and Billy couldn't believe his luck. His step-mother was standing in the hallway, not in a position to see them but in a position where she could definitely hear them.  
  
The blonde figured she must have heard them and she might not have the courage to come right here and stop his father but she found a different way to do so since his father let go off him and went to his beloved wife. The boy wondered for how long the luck would be on his side, how long the two females would keep saving him.  
  
Billy finally took the breath he was holding, letting his head sink low before he threw it back, hitting the wall multiple times. He didn't care his head was already hurting anyway, he needed to do something to make the wetness in his eyes go away.  
  
The tears weren't there because of his father, they were there because of the woman that was trying to save him, because of the sister that was looking out from her door now that Neil was gone, because of the boy on the other side of the town.  
  
——  
  
As soon as his father was gone, the blonde pushed himself away from the wall, looking down on his hands covered in blood. The same blood he could still feel pouring from his nose.  
  
The boy sighed slightly, his head throbbing at the pain spreading through his head. He wiped his nose again with his hand, not caring if he gets it all bloody again.  
  
He then made his way to his room, passing Max's slight opened door and he could see her sitting on the bed, staring right through the small place between her door.  
  
He could notice the soft worried features on her face and his breath got caught in his throath again. Reaching for the door handle, he shut the door gently before reaching for his own door and entering his room.  
  
As soon as he was inside, he made his way straight to bed, reaching for his cigarettes placed in his bedside table once he sat down.  
  
The boy ended up smoking three cigarettes before he managed to get up and go to the bathroom with the intend to take a shower.  
  
Billy spent about twenty minutes in the shower, letting the water wash away everything he felt. He felt the blood mixed with water sliding down his body and he watched it fall on the shower tiles, getting mixed with the rest of the water.  
  
The blonde stood in front of the fogged mirror once he exited the shower, towel wrapped around his waist. His hand wiped the mirror and he could finally see how he looked after those past days. The bruises from the fight with Tommy were slowly but surely fading.  
  
There was new redness forming around his nose and he could see his lip was cut open again even though it wasn't bleeding.  
  
The boy then looked away from the mirror, leaving the bathroom as he walked to his room quickly, not wanting to walk around in just a towel, showing off his bruised skin in front of the two redheads.  
  
After changing into his most comfortable clothes, the boy fell onto the bed, staring at the celling. He had some time in the shower to think about what happened back at the Byers' house.  
  
At the moment, all he could think about was how Jonathan flinched, how he moved away, how he thought Billy is going to hit him.  
  
But the blonde didn't pay attention to Jonathan dropping his hand immediately, his gaze softing instantly, his body still being relaxed around Billy.  
  
The blonde didn't think about how it was simply just a reflex coming from Jonathan's side, how the brunette couldn't find any words because even he didn't know what to say, how the boy wanted him to stay, meaning he knew the blonde wouldn't hurt him.  
  
Billy sat up on his bed, kicking one of his shoes that was placed on the floor before he rubbed his eyes with his hands, feeling a slight sting of pain when he got too close to his nose.  
  
He knew it wasn't broken but it still hurt, he felt the new bruise forming.  
  
The boy then stood up as he debated what to do. Emotions were almost drowning him but he managed to figure out what he was feeling. Guilt.  
  
Guilty for pulling Jonathan into his mess, for getting hurt and leaving the boy having to take care of him, for not even being properly thankful and leaving.  
  
He sighed as he stared at the wall in front of him, thinking about what he should. He felt as if he needed to apologize but he didn't know how to do that. He wasn't good with words and he didn't even know if the other boy wanted to see him.  
  
The blonde stayed sitting on his bed, simply staring at the wall for a couple of minutes until a knock on the door pulled him out from his thoughts. His gaze shifted to the door and a slight hint of fear spread through him for a split second, thinking it was his father.  
  
But he then realized his father never knocks and so he relaxed again. "Yes?" He called out, not really wanting to stand up.  
  
The door opened and revealed his step-sister standing behind them. He expected for her to say something and leave but the girl stepped inside and closed the door behind her.  
  
She then looked at him for a few seconds before she spoke. "Jonathan called while you were in the shower." The girl kept her eyes on him and he looked up as well, meeting her eyes.  
  
"What did he want?" He asked automatically before adding. "Did you answer it?"  
  
"Yeah, I did. And he asked if you were okay."  
  
The boy flinched at her words, the guilt that was spreading through his chest was creeping up onto his face now instead. "What did you say?"  
  
"That you are okay." The girl had her arms crossed as she watched her step-brother. "Aren't you?"  
  
"I am." He said without missing a beat before looking down at his feet for a second. He then let out a soft sigh as he looked at the girl again.  
  
The words were dancing on his tongue but he didn't know if had the courage to let them out, not wanting to let the redhead know what was really going on in his head.  
  
He then decided to ask her before it was too late. "How do you apologize to someone?"  
  
The redhead seemed to be a little taken back by those words as she blinked a few times before answering. "Just say you are sorry?" She sounded a little unsure and Billy's guess was that she didn't know what he meant by the question.  
  
"Yes, I know." The boy replied, wanting to finish the sentence but he himself didn't know how. He felt as if he would just go and try to talk to the other boy, his words would get stuck in his throat.  
  
"But how do you apologize to someone without having to say that?" He rephrased his question, earning a small chuckle from the girl.  
  
"Buy a cake? I don't know." The redhead said, more jokingly than seriously but the boy took the idea in and thought about it for a moment. "That's not actually such a bad idea."  
  
"You better hurry up then, the store is closing in twenty minutes." She annouced as she shook her head slightly, a hint of grin playing on her lips as she left the boy's room.  
  
He soon followed after he after he grabbed his jacket and wallet, not even caring that he was going to the store in sweatpants and not his signature jeans.  
  
——  
  
The boy managed to get to the store in time, searching for a while before asking an employee where he can find cakes. She showed him a section where they had three cakes, Billy didn't really like any of them but he took the cheapest one with the intention to change the way it looked at home.  
  
Once he got back home he found Max sitting on the kitchen counter, eating cookies from the cookie jar. He figured Susan and Neil had left somewhere since his step-mother wouldn't allow the girl to just sit there and steal the cookies.  
  
He had grinned to himself at the view of the redhead stuffing her face before he placed the cake next to her and the girl actually laughed, apparently not thinking he was really going to do it.  
  
"I need to write something on there, no? Or some shit like that."  
  
The girl ended up jumping off from the coutner and helping him with the frosting since he was a bit lost with it. He knew how to cook basic things, he learned when his father started coming late from work and the boy was hungry and needed to make his dinner by himself. But he had never in his life done anything with a cake.  
  
He ended up dictating the girl words to write on the cake and she would do so, shoot him a glance or hold back a laugh here and there. Billy was a bit impressed when the redhead wrote it onto the cake with ease and didn't screw up anything.  
  
"Nice, thanks." He made sure to comment her way once they were done and he was placing the cake back into the box. The girl just nodded in his way, flashing him one of her smallest yet rare smiles before she left to her room.  
  
The boy took the box with the cake and carefully made his way back to his car, placing it on the front seat as he started the car and drove to his soulmate's house.  
  
He was thinking as he drove. Should he really be apologizing? Isn't this stupid? Isn't this lame? Shouldn't Jonathan be the one apologizing for thinking Billy would hit him?  
  
But each time the blonde wanted to turn around and drove home, the feeling of guilt would bubble up inside him and he kept on driving.  
  
He got used to feeling calm around Jonathan, he could handle that. He got used to feeling warm around Jonathan, he could handle that too. But what he wasn't used to was feeling too attached to the other boy. Feeling the protectiveness over him. And now feeling guilt and need to apologize.  
  
That was something he wasn't used to.  
  
——  
  
The boy parked the car in front of the house, grabbing the box as he stepped out of the car. Once he was out, he placed the box on the hood of his car and closed the door of his car.

He then looked around the house, seeing more cars than usual. He frowned slightly as he looked over the cars, noticing that one of the cars had the 'Hawkins Police Dept.' on it.  
  
A hint of fear spread through him as the worst scenarios played through his head, wondering why the police was at Jonathan's. He hoped nothing happened.  
  
Just as he was about to do something, take the cake and go to the house or just quickly enter the house to see if everything was okay, the door opened and a tall man walked through them, turning over to wave at someone inside the house before he closed the door after him.  
  
Billy was standing a few meters away from the front door, the cake on the hood of his car, the boy watching the figure that was getting closer to him.  
  
He wondered if the photographer heard the engine and he hoped Jonathan would be coming out of the door any second. But no such thing happened and now he was facing the Chief as he found out by the plague on his chest.  
  
The boy had never seen the Chief of the town before and he wasn't sure if this was the best way to meet, with his face beaten and him standing in front of the house with a strange box placed on his car.  
  
"Evening." He then let out, not being sure why the Chief was here or if something happened, but he decided to be polite if something did happen. "Is everything alright?" He asked, not being able to stop himself.  
  
He never said it out loud but he cared about Jonathan and his family.  
  
The Chief looked over the boy. "I haven't seen you around before." He let out, clearly observing the boy. "They are fine." He then continued. "You look like you ran into a wall though."  
  
Billy was sure he meant his nose, it was already red when he was showering and now it must have looked worse, more red and more swollen.  
  
His hand flew up to touch his nose, cringing a little when it stung. "Yeah, walls don't like me." The boy just replied, knowing very well that the older man was aware he didn't get his face wrecked by a wall.  
  
"You better be carefull next time then, kid." The Cheif said, noticing how the other male flinched at the word 'kid'.  
  
Before either of the two could say something else, the front door of the house opened again and the photographer stepped outside. "I thought I heard your car."  
  
The blonde was shifting his gaze from the photographer standing on the porch to the Cheif standing next to his own car. "Max said you called." He then let out, not knowing what else to say at the moment.  
  
He didn't miss the puzzled look from the older man even though he was watching Jonathan approach them. "Max?" The man then questioned and now it was the blonde's turn to give him a look. "My sister." He replied, watching the man with curiousity in his eyes, completely missing the small smile playing on Jonathan's when he said sister instead of step-sister.  
  
The Chief opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something but he closed it again, the blonde could then feel the man's eyes exploring his bruised face again.  
  
The photographer reached them and now Billy could feel both of the other males staring at him. Jonathan took a step closer as his eyes scanned the bruised nose. He could see the other boy was opening his mouth to ask 'What happened?', he could just sense it. And so he quickly shook his head, looking away as he didn't want to talk about it.  
  
What he didn't expect was for the Chief to start speaking again. "You sure it was a wall?"  
  
The blonde whipped his head over to look at the man, his eyes hardening a bit. He never talked to the police. He knew it would get him in more trouble than he could usually get himself into. "Yes." He replied harshly, ignoring Jonathan's hand wrapping around his wrist.  
  
The boy let himself be pulled a little, calming down instantly when the warmth from Jonathan's hand started filling his body again.  
  
"Okay, kid. But if anything happens, let me know." The Chief said, looking at both Jonathan and Billy who frowned slightly, not understanding why was the strange cop suddently so interested in his life.  
  
"Why do you care?" He asked before he could stop himself, trying to get his hand away from Jonathan's grip but the photographer just squeezed his hand again slightly, keeping his fingers wrapped around Billy's wrist.  
  
"Max came to me a few days ago, asking about domestic abuse." The Chief let out and the blonde could feel his gaze burning into him.  
  
The boy started taking shaky breaths and he bit the inside of his cheek to stop himself from flashing at the older man. He felt Jonathan's closeness and he met his worried eyes for a second before he looked away again. "What did she say?"  
  
He needed to know if the Chief knew, he needed to know if Max told anyone, he needed to know if someone else knew.  
  
"That she thinks one of her friends is having problems at home. Asked me what she can do to help." The man was looking straight at Billy and the blonde knew he wasn't stupid and that he had his suspicions. "I didn't let her leave until she promised me she wasn't talking about herself."  
  
The blonde's head was pulsing and the hand placed around his wrist was burning into his skin, he was focusing so much on Jonathan to keep himself calm and not let anything slip in front of the Chief.  
  
"Do you know who that friend might be?" The man finally asked and Billy took in a shrap breath as the grip on his wrist tightened. "No." He then gritted through his teeth, his head was at loss since this was the first time anyone had tried to get something out of him that concerned his problems at home.  
  
The Chief shifted his gaze to Jonathan and the blonde could see the photographer shaking his head slightly. He was a bit thankfull that the boy was taking his side instead of the man's and that he wasn't trying to press the subject.  
  
"Alright, then. Goodnight, boys." The man then said before he got into his car and the two boys watched the car leave, the blonde finally taking in a proper breath.  
  
"You okay?" The photographer asked, finally letting go of the blonde's hand who looked at him for a second or two before he nodded slightly.  
  
"You wanna go inside?" The brunette then asked, earning another nod from the other boy.  
  
.——  
  
The brunette went first with the blonde going after him, holding the box and staying close to Jonathan.  
  
They walked through the living room and the blonde looked around to see if he could find the brother or the mother anywhere. Joyce turned around the corner a second later, flashing a smile to both of them. "Hey." She then greeted the blonde who returned her greeting.  
  
He hoped the woman wasn't angry with him for running away with Jonathan earlier but she didn't seem to be. He was glad about that, being thankfull that the woman didn't hold any grudges against him.  
  
"Hope you are not sick of me yet." He joked, earning a little laugh from the woman and a shake of head. The blonde returned the smile.  
  
"I am going to take a bath so don't go looking for me." The woman then annouced, making her way to the bathroom as all of them laughed a little.  
  
The two boys continued their walk towards the photographer's room, Billy shouting 'Hey, Will!' to the house, not being sure if the boy is hope but wanting to make sure he greeted him if he was. He soon heard a greeting somewhere from the house, guessing it was from the smaller boy's room.  
  
Once the door was closed behind him, a hit of nervousness came over him as he watched Jonathan walk towards his chair to take a sweater, watching him put it on. The boy then turned around to face Billy, clearly wanting to say something but he decided against it when he saw how nervous the blonde's gaze was.  
  
"What's up?"  
  
The blonde just looked down at the box in his hands before he walked towards the brunette, handing him the box. The brunette watched him with a puzzled look before he took the box into his hand and opened it.  
  
**'I'm sorry I blacked out, tried to kill you, and almost got us arrested.'**  
  
As soon as he opened the box, both of their gazes found the cake and Billy licked his lips nervously as he waited for the other boy to say something. And then the photographer started laughing, his whole body shaking with the giggles.  
  
But the blonde could see it wasn't a mocking laugh, it was just pure laughter.  
  
And somehow he found himself laughing along with him as he watched Jonathan put the box onto the bed. The brunette then straightened up a little, managing to contain his laughter even though he could still see it in his eyes.  
  
"I accept."  
  
"Thank fuck." The boy let out immediately, taking off his jacket as he threw it over the chair. "I do have to say, this was Max's idea. So we need to leave her some cake."  
  
"Alright, alright." The other boy was smiling again and the blonde noticed he was doing that a lot in his presence now.  
  
The photographer then turned more serious again as he kept his gaze on the taller boy. "I wanted to say sorry, too. That was why I called."  
  
The boy shifted on his feet a bit, looking away from the brunette before looking back at him. "No need."  
  
"I want to, though. I don't want you to think that I am scared of you. I am not." The photographer spoke as he stepped closer to the blonde. "You know that I am not, right?" He then said, standing closer to the taller boy.  
  
The blonde stayed silent as he chewed on his lip, looking down on his shoes instead of looking at the photographer. "Mhm."  
  
"Billy." The other boy said more strongly now and the blonde couldn't figure out how he managed to sound strong yet soft at the same time.  
  
The use of his name made him look up and meet those brown eyes staring right back at him. "I know." He then answered the boy's question.  
  
"Good." The photographer said as he flashed him a smile, stepping even closer to the blonde who knew what was coming.  
  
"Noo." He groaned out, wrinkling his nose as he watched the photographer reach out for him, clearly wanting to pull him into a hug.  
  
"Shut up." The brunette then said, shoving his shoulder gently before pulling onto his hand, trying to pull him into an embrace.  
  
"Disgusting." The blonde let out, more in a joking matter than a serious one. He tried to turn around and run away but the brunette already had a hand around him, hugging him from behind.  
  
"Gross." Billy kept on making disgusted noises but he was laughing softly, noticing that the other boy was laughing as well. The boy put his own hands onto Jonathan's hands, keeping him in place before he kneeled down a bit, making the brunette fall onto his back since he was holding onto him.  
  
The blonde then ended up trying to do squats while having the other boy on his back but both of them ended up on the floor when he lost his balance.  
  
Laughter filled the room just as Will's "What are you doing?' echoed through the house.


	10. Denial

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two abused boys share a bond they didn't ask for. Becoming close and questioning everything.
> 
> ——
> 
> Or: Since Billy isn't getting the redemption in the show, I am giving him one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for continuing this story!
> 
> I can't believe we are so close to 1000 hits, you guys are amazing! <3

denial;  
  
the refusal of something requested or desired.  
  
——  
  
More weeks passed and the boys still found each other in their company.  
  
They stayed at their usual places, Jonathan's house, the theater, the dark room, a spot in the forest they found next to a lake.  
  
Billy eventually wandered to Tommy and the boys again, it was exactly like he thought so, they didn't say anything about the fight and he had a feeling they wouldn't bother Jonathan again, or he hoped so.  
  
Jonathan was still with Nancy, hanging around with Steve and the kids. But he tried to pull the blonde into the circle a few times even though Billy kept on refusing. He kept his distance, only exchanging a few words with Steve during practise and in the shower.  
  
He did however once run into Nancy at the theater, it was one of the afternoons when the blonde spent it annoying Jonathan at his work but their usual routine got interrupted when Nancy came over to bring her boyfriend a lunch.  
  
The blonde was turning around to leave but the girl stopped him, saying she only dropped off the lunch. The boy felt weird staying now since it would seem like he was only leaving because of the girl, which was true but he didn't want it to show.  
  
He ended up offering her a ride home, earning a pleased smile from Jonathan and a surprised smile from Nancy. But she refused, saying she has a few things to take care of in the town.  
  
The boy thanked all the Gods and left home soon after that.  
  
Other than that he just saw her around few times, but they didn't talk and he preferred it that way.  
  
The next person from the group he sometimes saw around, other than his step-sister, was Will.  
  
The two boys saw each other when the blonde visited the familiar house on his many occasions. Reading comics while Jonathan did his homework, watching TV while Jonathan cooked and refused any help.  
  
Billy once took the boy for a ride in his car, showing him the music he listened to even after Jonathan's protests. The boy ended up admiring the blonde's car, earning a smirk from the blonde and a roll of eyes from the brunette.  
  
Him and Max fell into a new way of dynamics as well. Helping each other with the little things like Billy taking her bag when she was running late, Max telling him he forgot something when he didn't pay that much attention, Billy seeing that they were out of her favourite thing to snack on and buying it the next time he went to the store, Max helping him look for his lighter when he couldn't find it.  
  
Or actually talking during their rides even though it was about the most random topics ever. Comics, music, California, school, skating, clothes, games, movies.  
  
This was one of the rides, the two of them going home from school. It was Max's turn to decide on the tape and she put one in, probably not really caring which one.  
  
She turned down the volume a bit but Billy could still hear the sounds of Van Halen filling the car.  
  
"I saw Jonathan today, he is starting to look like you with that leather jacket he was wearing."  
  
The redhead then started the conversation, earning a slight chuckle from the boy.  
  
He knew exactly what she was talking about. He found an abandoned leather jacket in the back of the brunette's closet and he made him wear it immediately, ignoring Jonathan's protests about it not exactly being his style.  
  
"Told him he would look good in it."  
  
The blonde could feel the girl's eyes on him and he was wondering what was going through her head. The two of them didn't really talk much about Jonathan, she knew they were hanging out, she even answered the phone both times when the brunette called to look for him. But they never talked directly about it.  
  
He had a feeling it was probably this exact moment when the conversation comes and his suspicion turned out to be right once he heard her voice.  
  
"So, how is Jonathan?"  
  
"Fine? I don't know."  
  
"Never would have imagined you two hanging out."  
  
"Yeah, me neither." He let out, one of the corners of his mouth lifting up a bit.  
  
"You probably imagined someone else being your soulmate." The redhead replied after a few seconds of silence.  
  
The boy almost choked on air and lost control of the wheel after he heard the girl's words. He then quickly pulled himself up, gripping onto the wheel as he turned to stare at the girl who was almost grinning. "What?"  
  
"I had my suspicions but now you confirmed them." The redhead crossed her hands as she looked at the boy. "Why didn't you tell me?"  
  
The blonde could only stare at the girl, blinking a few times before he was able to even asnwer. "What do you mean by suspicions ?" He asked before narrowing his eyes at her. "What? Why would I tell you?" He gave the girl another look before fixing his eyes on the road.  
  
"You act different around him. Not like a robot programmed to do the same like you did back with the guys in Cali." She said with ease as if she had been meaning to say that for a while.  
  
The boy shifted at her words, trying to stop them from sinking into his brain but it was too late. "Really?" He couldn't help but let slip out.  
  
"Yeah, I like it." The girl said, giving him one of her smallest smiles. She didn't give him many smiles and he almost treasured those she did.  
  
The blonde stared at the road for a few seconds before he looked at the girl again. "Don't tell anyone." He made sure it didn't seem as much as a threat.  
  
"Why would I tell anyone?" She reacted defensively before relaxing again. "Does Will know?"  
  
"I don't know, just don't." The boy replied as he nervously tapped onto the steerling wheel. "Yeah, he does."  
  
Max then just nodded slightly, leaning back into her seat and she looked as if she was thinking about something but was hesitating about saying it out loud.  
  
"So, are you like together?"  
  
"What?" The boy whipped his head over to look at the girl, giving her a puzzled look for the second time during this ride. "What the fuck are you on about today?"  
  
"Nothing, nothing." The girl quickly said, raising her hands up in defense. "It's just that you are soulmates.." She shrugged slightly, almost innocently.  
  
"That doesn't mean anything." He spat out, running his tongue over his bottom lip as he kept his eyes on the road. "Soulmates can be just friends, Max."  
  
"Sooo.." The redhead started, looking out of the window before fixing her gaze onto her step-brother. "Just friends?"  
  
"I am not a fag." He gritted through his teeth as soon as the words left the girl's mouth.  
  
"Alright, alright." The girl instantly assured the boy.  
  
"Where is this even coming from?" He peaked from the corner of his eye, watching the girl as he waited for her to answer.  
  
"Remember Kate? Her brother also had a guy as a soulmate. And they were together."  
  
The boy did remember Max's friend and he also remembered her older brother Kevin. He used to see him around sometimes, him and his soulmate. But the thing was, no one really cared back in California. Here, in Hawkins, people would lose their shit.  
  
"I'm not a fag." He then repeated, assuring both the girl and himself because now that the girl brought it up, he couldn't stop himself from thinking what if he was? What if they were supposed to be together?  
  
_No._  
  
"I didn't say you were." The redhead replied quietly, switching the tapes in the radio.  
  
"You found your soulmate yet?" He changed the topic as he pulled the car into their street.  
  
"No. I am not looking for them either." The girl just said, earning a nod from the boy.  
  
That was how their conversation ended, the boy being lost in his own thoughts and the girl being lost in hers.  
  
——  
  
That night the blonde was tossing around in his bed, his step-sister's words repeating themselves in his head.  
  
He couldn't shake the thought that if she noticed, maybe someone else did. Maybe someone else knew him and Jonathan were soulmates, maybe his dad did, maybe Nancy did.  
  
The boy turned to his left side, sighing softly as he shut his eyes again. He was almost praying to get some sleep just to get the thoughts away.  
  
His mind traveled back to the memories he had of that boy Max talked about, and his soulmate.  
  
He saw them around a couple of times, he saw them holding hands, he saw them laughing with each other, he saw them patching themselves up after one of the group of boys jumped them.  
  
He never cared about them, he didn't care if someone was fucking a girl or a boy, he didn't care.  
  
But he knew some people did, some people did a lot. And he was sure people here would care a lot more than people back in California.  
  
It wasn't that strange back in California. The two soulmates weren't the only one homosexuals the blonde saw back in the day.  
  
They had their spots, their bars just like the troubled group of boys had theirs. They always looked comfortable in their spots, all happy and carefree.  
  
Billy kind of envied that in some way.  
  
But he had a thought that if the two boys would be here, it wouldn't be so simple. He could already picture Tommy giving them shit and they weren't even here.  
  
The blonde tossed onto his other side again, grabbing the watch from his table to look at the time. 1am.  
  
Another sigh escaped his throat as he stared at the celling, trying to shut his mind down.  
  
But the questions were creeping on him from every direction of his brain and he felt his head almost throbbing.  
  
He had thought about the possibility of liking boys twice before. Once when he saw the couple Max talked about for the first time. But the next day he found himself in the arms of another girl that didn't matter to him and he forgot about it.  
  
The next time it was when he found out who his soulmate was. A boy. Jonathan. But once again, the thought only crossed his mind and he threw it away once he found himself in a car with yet another girl.  
  
This was the first time the blonde actually thought about it.  
  
He knew he liked girls, he loved them, their bodies. He knew that. He knew he loved the way their soft skin felt pressed against his body and he knew he loved how their curves looked when they put on tighter clothes than usual.  
  
Girls, women, he adored them.  
  
Then he thought about boys and he couldn't bring himself to figure out anything.  
  
_Did thinking a boy is good looking mean you like them?  
_  
_No, why couldn't you say someone is good looking?_  His friends back in California were good looking, Steve was good looking, that one boy in his team was good looking, Jonathan was good looking.  
  
He could say that, he could think anyone is good looking.  
  
_Did hugging a boy mean you like them?_  
  
_No, boys, girls, they hug all the time.  
_  
_Did hanging out with a boy mean you like them?  
_  
_No, boys hang around all the time._  
  
The boy let out a frustrated groan as he tossed around again, taking the pillow from under his head and throwing it over his face, slightly wanting to just not let any air back into his lungs.  
  
He eventually threw the pillow back on the bed, knocking the covers away from himself.  
  
This was all Max's fault.  
  
The blonde stood up, not caring about what time it is as he quietly made his way towards his step-sister's room.  
  
He knew he wouldn't fall asleep unless he got some answers first.  
  
The boy opened the door quietly, not wanting to wake up anyone else. He closed them after himself just as quietly before he looked over at the girl sleeping in her bed.  
  
He thought about if he is being stupid, if he should just go back to bed and talk about this tomorrow.  
  
But his thoughts would tear him open inside before the morning and so the boy leaned down and shook with the girl slightly. "Max."  
  
The girl tossed to the side a bit, still sleeping and he gently shook with her again. "Maxine."  
  
"Don't call me that." The girl let out sleepily as she opened her eyes slightly, trying to adjust her eyes to the dark.  
  
"What are you doing? What time is it?" The girl said once she stretched her arms and rubbed her eyes.  
  
"Not important." The boy replied quietly as he let himself sink down onto the floor next to her bed. "I can't sleep and it's your fault."  
  
"How is it my fault?" The girl questioned and he could see her rolling her eyes even in the dark.  
  
"All that shit talk about soulmates is messing with me." He admitted, feeling a little weird about talking so openly with the girl again, but it felt like the good kind of a relief as well.  
  
The redhead sat up on her bed as she stared at the boy kneeling on her bedroom floor. "Did you figure out something?"  
  
"No, genius. That's why I am here."  
  
"Okay?" The girl still didn't know what he wanted but she decided to wait.  
  
"You like that Sinclair kid, no? Lucas? And he likes you and all that shit?"  
  
"Well, yeah?" The redhead was fully watching him now, questions and interest showing in her eyes.  
  
The boy nodded slightly at that confrimation. "But how do you even know? That you like someone?" He managed to let out, feeling the uncomfortableness creeping onto him. He had never in his life imagined he would be willing to talk with the girl about something like this.  
  
He expected the girl to laugh at him, tell him to go away, but she actually just sat up a bit more, pulling away the hair that were falling into her face before replying. "We hang out. He is nice to me, he cares about me." She started, looking like she didn't even know what she is going to say herself.  
  
"He makes me laugh and he wants to make me laugh." She then said, a small grin creeping on her face which made the boy cringe but he stayed silent waiting for her to continue.  
  
"I think that's how you know someone likes you, they want to spend time with you and they make time for you. And you make time for them because you like them too." She shrugged slightly.  
  
"I like talking with Lucas, I like that he is funny and that he kept on trying to get to know me and trying to get his friends to like me and get me into his group, you know?"  
  
The boy was staring at her, his eyes showing no emotions even though his insides were falling apart.  
  
Hanging out. _Check._  
  
Being nice. _Check_.  
  
Caring. _Check_.  
  
Making each other laugh. _Check_.  
  
Making time for each other. _Check_.  
  
Trying to get to know him. _Check_.  
  
The blonde took a quick breath as he nodded slightly towards the girl, standing up slowly as he stretched his legs.  
  
"Did it help?" She asked as she watched the boy walk towards the door and open them with the intention to go back to his room.  
  
"No."  
  
——  
  
The two siblings haven't talked when they saw each other in the morning since the blonde just grabbed his toast and went to his room. They haven't talked during the ride to the school since the boy just put on his sunglasess and turned the music on.  
  
The blonde avoided every single person in school. He didn't talk to Tommy through all of the lessons, ignoring all his attempts of talking with him. He ignored Carol's questions, he ignored Jonathan's wave and greeting, he ignored Nancy's gaze, he ignored Steve at practise.  
  
He ignored Will's look when the whole little group poured out of the school during lunch break. He ignored Max's stare.  
  
The only person he didn't ignore was a girl that caught his eye. He could feel her stare on him and when his eyes found her, he was surprised to find her giving him a small smirk instead of turning away and pretending she wasn't looking.  
  
He threw his cigarette away and made his way towards her, deciding that this was just the type of a girl he could like, the type of a girl he could drown in to stop all his thoughts.  
  
The blonde intended to end up with a girl by the end of the day. He needed to stop Max's words from replaying in his head, he needed to see for himself, he needed to prove his father's words weren't right for all this time.  
  
He first thought about going to the Wheeler's house, he had the woman half cracked open, just a little push and she would be all ready to throw away her husband. He was pretty sure about that.  
  
But the possibility of someone catching them, of Nancy catching them made him throw away the idea.  
  
That was why he found himself leaning against the wall next to the girl, charming her into his own very bubble. Her name turned out to be Jenny and she seemed to be such as charming as the boy.  
  
He had liked it. She looked beautiful. _This could work._  
  
And so about thirty minutes later, he was standing in the empty classroom next to the stairs. Nobody used it for teaching, some of the desks and windows being broken, but a lot of students used it for different activities.  
  
The boy was leaning against the desk, his jacket long gone somewhere on a chair, his hands exploring the soft skin under the girl's blouse and her legs being wrapped around him.  
  
Her soft, smooth skin was like a saten under his fingers. The sweetnest taste of her lips was mixing well with his bitterness from cigarettes. Her sweet smell of what he guessed was a vanilla perfume was drowning him and her gentle touch was almost terrifying to him.  
  
When the boy felt hands unzipping his jeans, he pulled away from the long lasting kiss to look at the girl, taking her chin into his hands.  
  
He stared into the deep blue eyes and slowly watched them morph into the familiar warm brown eyes.  
  
The boy blinked a few times but his mind was still messing with him, changing the girl's beautiful blue eyes into his soulmate's brown eyes.  
  
And so he just buried his face into the girl's neck, his lips exploring the new parts of her soft skin as he pulled her closer to him, letting his thoughts fly out from his mind.  
  
——  
  
The boy then gave up on the rest of the day, leaving the girl once she went to the bathroom, skipping the lessons he had left and going to the gym instead.  
  
He now kept a gym bag in the back of his car, finding himself in the gym almost every day lately. It wasn't much because the boy wanted to shape his body, it was more because it brought him relief of any stress he had.  
  
He liked how all his muscles tensed when he lifted the weights, he liked how sore yet satisfied he felt after he finished his workout, he liked how blank his mind was when he listened to the music as he hit the boxing sack.  
  
But this day the boy got carried away as he exercised, trying to lift the most weight he could, trying to do the quickests pulls-ups he could, trying to do the most squats he could.  
  
The boy still managed to keep track on time and managed to get back to school in time to wait for his step-sister.  
  
He was leaning against his car, sunglasses shielding his eyes, lit cigarette placed in his mouth, his eyes exploring the parking lot.  
  
Max's was supposed to pour out of the school any second now since her last lesson ended few minutes ago. The boy got the girl's schedule memorized by now.  
  
The high schoolers started to pour out of the school along with the middle schoolers and the boy looked for the redhead in the crowd.  
  
He took one last drag from his cigarette, throwing it away before it could burn his fingers. He then looked back up, his gaze exploring the parking lot once again. He didn't see his step-sister but he did see the brown eyed male walking towards him.  
  
Him and Jonathan hadn't talked today at all and he knew the boy was wondering why. The two of them greeted each other every day. Exchanging a 'hello' or at least a nod, a grin. But today the blonde completely ignored him and knowing Jonathan, it wasn't really much of a surprise when the boy approached him.  
  
The two of them got even more comfortable with each other in the past weeks, everything seemed to get better now that the blonde had met the brunette's family and was able to come around when they were around and even spend time with them as well.  
  
Reading comics with Will, taking a look at Joyce's troubled car, watching a movie with them along with his soulmate.  
  
If the boy ever dared to think about what his life would be if his mother was alive and if he and Max were siblings at different occasions, he would say it felt like that. A family kind of.  
  
The blonde turned his head a bit to the side when the brunette finally reached him and he was glad he was wearing his sunglasses so he didn't have to meet the brown eyes. He was staring at the boy's shoulder instead.  
  
"I've been looking for you everywhere."  
  
"I've been avoiding you everywhere."  
  
He could see the photographer was frowning slightly, a confusion spreading across his face. "Why?"  
  
The blue eyed boy could hear the redhead's skateboard coming towards him and so he just shrugged slightly, forcing one of his small grins onto his face as he patted the boy's shoulder before he brushed past him and got into the car, followed by his sister a few seconds later.  
  
He drove off as soon as Jonathan stepped away from the Camaro and the blonde looked into the mirror just once to see his soulmate looking after them.  
  
——  
  
He headed to his room as soon as they got home, he didn't talk to his sister during the whole ride, he just turned the music up and drove home.  
  
The boy was glad it was Friday, meaning he didn't have to see his soulmate until Monday. He could spend the whole day smoking and listening to music in his room, exercising at home and in the gym, he could do whatever he wanted.  
  
And that was exactly what he did. He smoked three packs of cigarettes by the Saturday evening, he spent the entire day in the gym. Waking up early and going for a run, stopping by at a diner to grab a quick breakfast, making his way to the gym right after that.  
  
He left the gym only because he had promised Susan he would be home for dinner and he wanted to fulfill that promise, one reason was because he knew his father wouldn't be too pleased with him if he didn't show up, second reason was because lately he started to appreciate the woman more.  
  
The boy just finished changing into shorts and shirt he wore at home, wanting to be in his comortable clothes for the dinner, when he heard a knock on his door.  
  
Taking a few steps to the door, he opened them, revealing his step-sister standing in front of him. "Yes?"  
  
"Jonathan called when you were out, asking where you were." The girl started and the boy cringed instantly. "Asked me to tell you when you are back." She finished, eyeing the boy that was standing in front of her.  
  
"What did you tell him?"  
  
"That you were out." The redhead shrugged slightly, still watching the blonde.  
  
The boy then just nodded and stepped into the hallway, closing the door behind him. The two siblings walked to the kitchen where the married couple was already waiting for them.  
  
Dinner didn't turn out to be such a disaster as the blonde thought it would be. It wasn't a comfortable nice dinner like he had with the Byers but it was alright. It was mostly his father and Susan talking to each other than him and Max.  
  
He had eaten his portion, he had complimented Susan on the dish, he had thanked her for making dinner, he had taken his plate and washed it in the sink. _Respect and responsibility._  
  
The blonde was just about go back to his room when the phone started ringing and being the closest to the phone, he answered it. "Hello?"  
  
"Billy?"  
  
He squeezed his eyes in a slight furstration once he heard the photographer's voice but he kept his neutral face and tone. "One and only."  
  
"I called earlier today." The other boy started hesitatedly. "I wanted to ask if you want to hang out."  
  
The boy was playing with the phone chord, his fingers wrapping around it. "I am kinda busy this weekend, I will see you on Monday at school, yeah?" He lied, not wanting to spend time with the boy just yet.  
  
"Oh, okay. Okay." The photographer replied and Billy could tell he was nodding at the other end of the town. He knew Jonathan was the type of a person to nod while talking over the phone.  
  
"See you." The blonde shortly replied, ending the phone call before the other boy had a chance to reply.  
  
As he went to go to his room, he could feel the redhead's eyes on him, it made him disappear into his room and not go out until everyone else was asleep.  
  
——  
  
Sunshine was creeping into the room, music was quietly playing in the background, the wind coming from the window, tickling his bare legs.  
  
The boy was lying on his bed, his blanket threw slightly over his body. One of his hands under his head, supporting the position he was lying in.  
  
His other hand was placed on his bare stomach, his fingertips tapping into the rhytm of the music he put into the radio. His eyes were closed and he could feel the wind dancing around his body, sending shivers down his spine.  
  
The blonde was running his fingers up and down his chest as he often did when he was just relaxing, letting the music take his mind away.  
  
He eventually opened his eyes, his eyes roaming the room as if he tried to find something new, something different. But he didn't. He shifted his gaze to the window, noticing that the sky was one of the prettiest shades of blue.  
  
He then moved his gaze again, his eyes finding the poster attached to his closet. He had looked at the poster numerous times yet now he was exploring it once again.  
  
Staring at the poster for at least a minute, the boy then turned his head away, closing his eyes as he let his fingers trace down, finding the soft skin of his underbelly.  
  
He let his hand slip under the waistband of his briefs, his eyes closed as he let the music fill his ears while letting his imagition run wild on its own.  
  
Imagines started to appear in his mind, flashes of memories of women's bodies.  
  
Mouths painted in the colour red, cheeks flushed with blush that is spreading to their neck, collarbones creeping out of blouses along with a clevage, breasts the size just perfect for a palm, thighs wrapped around his body, soft curves of woman's back, hair falling onto shoulders.  
  
Soft, curvy female bodies of all shapes playing in his mind.  
  
But suddenly the imagines started changing to brown eyes, sharp jawline, thin lips, brown bangs falling into the deep brown eyes, small smile playing on pale pink lips, dimples appearing when the smile got bigger.  
  
The blonde pulled his hand out from his brief, turning over onto his stomach and burying his face into the pillow, wanting to do nothing else but bash his head open.  
  
——  
  
The boy stayed in his bed for hours, he could hear shuffling around in the house, he could hear people talking, he could hear door closing, he could hear the TV playing, he could hear water running.  
  
He was a bit surprised his father didn't come marching into his room, yelling at him for laying in bed all day and being useless. But the boy remembered that the married couple planned a trip to the city a while back, both of the siblings refusing to join them.  
  
And so when he heard the front door shut, he finally sat up on his bed with the intention to leave his room to get something to eat.  
  
Putting on the first shirt he grabbed, he opened the door and made his way to the kitchen, leaving the door open.  
  
The boy ran his hand through his hair as he walked, his eyes flickering to the TV to notice some random program he didn't care about was playing. He also noticed his step-sister sitting on the couch but she didn't even raise her head to acknowledge him so he did the same.  
  
He opened the fridge, grabbing the bowl of pasta from yesterday, putting a portion on a plate before placing the bowl back into the fridge. He then grabbed the plate with a fork and made his way back to his room.  
  
The blonde stopped halfway to his room, thinking if he should eat it alone in his room or sit down onto the couch and eat it in Max's presence with the TV playing.  
  
He chose the latter, getting tired of the loneliness he exposed himself to this weekend.  
  
Sinking down onto the opposite side of the couch, the boy put his feet onto the living room table in front of the couch, placing the plate on his lap as he started to eat, his eyes fixed on the television.  
  
"I was starting to think you died back there." The girl said, clearly implying to the fact the boy had been living in his room for the past two days.  
  
"I wish." He simply said, stuffing his face with more pasta.  
  
"You look stressed." The redhead then observed, her eyes exploring the blonde's face.  
  
"Thanks, it's the stress." He let out sarcastically, swallowing the pasta he had in his mouth as he spoke.  
  
The girl didn't speak again, but the boy could feel her eyes on him every now and then. But he didn't pay attention to it, he just ate the food he had on his plate, getting up as soon as he was done to put the plate away.  
  
He washed his dishes, something he always did so his father couldn't blame him for the stockpiling dishes on the counter, and then he made his way back to his room, not knowing what he is going to do for the rest of the day, not wanting to spend it alone with his thoughts.  
  
"You going back to your cave?"  
  
The girl's voice echoed through the house when he was almost walking into his room, he turned around and took a few steps back to look at the girl. "Why?"  
  
"I have a better idea, get dressed." The redhead said as she rose from the couch, quickly making her way to her room, her eyes catching the boy that was still standing in the same place. "Come on, get dressed." She repeated before disappearing into her room.  
  
The boy stayed standing there for just a little longer before he actually turned around again and made his way to his room, putting on the first jeans and jacket he found, slipping his keyes and wallet into his pocket.  
  
He then fixed his hair a little, noticing the hint of underbags showing on his face. He slightly frowned at that realization as he looked away from the mirror, exiting his room a second after.  
  
The redhead was already stading in front of the front door and the boy noticed she changed as well, but she wasn't holding her skateboard, which was a bit unusual.  
  
"Where are we going?" He asked once the two of them exited the house and made their way to his car.  
  
"You will see."  
  
"How am I supposed to drive when I don't know where I am going?"  
  
"I will navigate you."  
  
"Ugh." The boy rolled his eyes as he got into the car. He didn't like surprises, he didn't like the fact that the girl was willingly wanting to spend time with him.  
  
But in the back of his mind he knew it was because he blamed the girl for messing with his head, because the girl now knew Jonathan is his soulmate and she knew he has been avoiding him for the past couple of days. He had a feeling she was doing this to get his mind off things.  
  
And that made him cringe a little, not knowing how to feel about that.  
  
But he didn't say anything, he didn't question the girl, he just drove, following her directions.  
  
He didn't pay much attention to where they were going but once he made the last turn to the left, he saw the familiar building he drove his sister to numerous times. "The Arcade?"  
  
"Yeah. Have you ever been actually inside?" The girl questioned, unblucking her seatbelt once the boy parked the car in front of the Arcade.  
  
"No, why would I go inside?" He stubbornly replied, still sitting in the same position.  
  
"Just come on." The redhead rolled her eyes at him and got out of the car. The boy followed after her with the intention to complain every second of whatever they were about to do.  
  
He entered the building right after his sister, his eyes searching the place immediately. To his horror he found a bunch of kids placed around the consoles but they didn't seem to pay any attention to whoever entered the building.  
  
He then noticed his step-sister waving at him, telling him to come over to her. Looking around he could see numerous names of games around him. Dragon's Lair, Galaga, Pac-Man. The one his step-sister was standing in front of was called Dig Dug.  
  
"Have you ever played this?" The girl asked, leaning against the game console.  
  
The boy just looked directly at the girl, raising his eyebrows a bit as he crossed his arms. He saw a few gaming consoles but he never actually tried playing it.  
  
A small grin showed on the girl's face as she straightened up, grabbing the console. "I will show you. Give me some money." The redhead said, stretching her palm towards the boy.  
  
The blonde rose his eyebrows even higher, muttering a curse under his breath but he did dig into his pocket and placed some money into the girl's palm, a slight frown playing on his face as he did so.  
  
"This better not be some bullshit." He then said as he leaned against the console as well, his eyes fixed on the screen as he watched his step-sister play the game.  
  
She ended up playing a few more games before she challenged the other boy to try, he tried his best but he kept on cursing when he died, making his sister giggle. She offered to help him but he shushed her, saying he can figure it out on his own.  
  
She did end up helping him in the end and the boy found himself not hating this. Playing games at some arcade with his sister. It was quite entertaining and it definitely took his mind off things.  
  
He kind of regretted letting his anger take over his life, because if he didn't allow that, this could have been a typical Sunday for the two siblings.  
  
And even though the damage was done already, maybe it wasn't too late to repair it.


	11. Truth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two abused boys share a bond they didn't ask for. Becoming close and questioning everything.
> 
> ——
> 
> Or: Since Billy isn't getting the redemption in the show, I am giving him one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for continuing this story!
> 
> I am sorry for not posting earlier but I am graduating and I am super busy these days, so please bare with me during the next chapters. <3

truth;  
  
sincerity in action, character, and utterance.  
  
——  
  
Billy did go to school on Monday and he did greet the other boy, he didn't ignore him anymore and he actually talked to him again, pushing all of the Max's words and his thoughts deep down into his mind.  
  
He didn't want to think about anything anymore, he just wanted to live his life like before again.  
  
The rest of the week went by as usual, going to school, going home, visiting Jonathan at work, going to the gym, going for a run.   
  
On Friday, the whole family was sat at the table, putting what they wanted on their plates since they had multiple options this time. _Susan must have been bored.  
_  
Billy hated when he had to go through those family dinners but he always suffered through it, knowing it would be way worse for him if he didn't come home for them.  
  
And just like any other dinner, he was sat next to his step-sister, opposite his father. He was glad there was always a table between him and his father and he preferred to sit next to the young readhead.  
  
Just as usual, the parents were talking, asking annoying questions about school, trying to get something out of their children.  
  
That was until the girl put her fork down, her hands falling onto her lap as she linked her fingers together. "Mom?"  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"You know how it's Spring break next week?"  
  
"Yes?" The woman was eyeing her daughter, the man next to her was watching the redhead as well, just Billy wasn't, he was only listening to her as he ate silently.  
  
"All of my friends are going to a cabin and they invited me, too. Can I go? Please."  
  
"All your friends? You kids going alone?" The woman raised her eyebrows at her daughter who shook her head quickly.   
  
"No, no. Mike's sister is going and Will's brother is coming too. And Steve."  
  
The boy chuckled silently as he chewed onto his potatoes. This wasn't news to him. Jonathan had told him they are planning a cabin get away but he didn't tell him it was done deal already.  
  
"I don't know, Max. I don't know any of them." The mother looked very unsure and the blonde didn't blame her, he wouldn't send his kid away with people he had never met before.  
  
The boy was just about to take some food on his fork when his leg was kicked and the fork almost slipped from his hand. He was about to yell out something like 'What the hell?' when he realized why the redhead kicked him.  
  
He spared her a glance, rubbing his calf with his other foot as he then looked over at the woman. "I know them, they are fine." He let out, feeling Max relax a little in her chair.  
  
"Are you friends?" The woman asked and the boy almost cringed, the redhead could clearly see his hesitation since she kicked his leg again, using way less force this time.  
  
"Friendish." The boy said, stuffing his face with more potatoes.  
  
"Well, then you can go with Max."The mother annouced, leaning back into the chair as she watched the two siblings.  
  
"What?" Both the blonde and the redhead let out at once, staring at the woman in front of them.  
  
"If others are taking their siblings, why couldn't you, Maxine?" The woman said, crossing her hands as she stared her daughter down.  
  
"But mom!" The redhead threw her hands around, pouting as she stared right back at her mother.  
  
"No, you are not going alone." Her mother shook her head, taking back her fork.   
  
"I am old enough to go alone, mom!"  
  
"Enough." The father finally spoke, making the mother start eating, the redhead sigh and the boy raise his head to look at him.  
  
"I will go with her." The boy then said, earning a surprised look from the girl, a pleased smile from the woman and a nod from the man.   
  
All of them then finished dinner quickly, cleaning the dishes before they all went their own seperate ways.   
  
The boy then spent about five minutes in his bedroom before he made his way towards his step-sister's bedroom, knocking on the door two times, entering even before getting a permission.  
  
He found the girl sitting on her bed, doing what seemed to be homework. She had looked up the second he entered the room, watching him with question playing in her eyes.  
  
"Listen, I know your buddies wouldn't want me there and I don't want to spend my break with them either." He started as soon as he closed the door, leaning against the wall as he spoke.   
  
"I will drive you there and then do my own thing. And when we get back home, we will say we were together, understood?" The boy finished, looking at the girl who seemed to be surprised a little.  
  
"Why are you doing this?" She then asked, putting away her homework as she watched the boy.  
  
The boy just shrugged slightly, he didn't want to admit he wanted to do something nice for her, he didn't want to admit that he wanted to be a better brother to her. "I owe you some." He simply said.  
  
The redhead nodded slightly, a small smile forming on her face. "Thanks."   
  
He straightened up a little, shifting on his feet after receiving the thank you, he wasn't used to her thanking him for anything and he had to admit it made him feel some type of good emotion that he couldn't name.  
  
"Just give me the details later so I know when and where we are going." He said, reaching for the handle when the girl spoke again.  
  
"And what are you going to do during Spring break then?"  
  
The boy stopped with his hand on the handle, not really having an answer to that. He couldn't go back home and spend his nights partying with Tommy and the boys, he couldn't spend his time with Jonathan either since the boy would be at the cabin.  
  
"I will figure something out." The blonde said before leaving the room.  
  
——  
  
And so over the weekend the blonde slowly learned the time and the location the group is going to. He had time over the weekend to pack everything he needed for his own little trip and had time to make sure his step-sister had everything as well since he didn't want to go back for anything.  
  
He had decided he will just stay somewhere around the cabin, in the forests, in the nearest city, just anywhere in his car. He packed a tent with him and he just decided to see where his feet lead him.   
  
He did want to stay somewhere close, wanting to be around if something had happened, if his step-sister changed her mind and wanted to go home early, if Jonathan wanted to actually see him during the break.  
  
Speaking of the boy, the blonde actually didn't see his soulmate during the weekend. He figured the brunette was busy with packing and preparing for the trip and so he didn't try to make any plans at hanging out.  
  
He had only called him, telling him he is going to drive his sister to their little cabin get away. The brunette had immediately asked if the boy was going to stay with them, getting a 'No' for an answer.  
  
The blonde decided not to fill him in on his plan of cruising the surroundings around the cabin, telling to himself that he can always talk to him later.  
  
And so the boy was now sitting in his car, a sleeping redhead by his side, two backpacks on the backseat and two bags with a tent in the trunk of the car.  
  
The ride wasn't that long, or maybe it was but Billy just didn't see it as a long ride. He loved driving and he loved taking his beloved car onto unknown roads, exploring different places. He liked road trips, long or short, he didn't mind.  
  
He liked the idea of going somewhere where no one knows you, where you don't know what to expect, where you can do anything you want.  
  
This road trip was just the same as the rest of his road trips with the only exceptions that instead of the usual brunette photographer, a redhead skater was sitting by his side this time.  
  
The blonde got quite used to taking himself and his soulmate to road trips and he wondered if it would be the same good atmosphere with his step-sister. But the girl fell asleep almost immediately as they drove away from Hawkins. And the boy couldn't bring himself to wake her up.  
  
So he drove more carefully than usual, trying to not take any sharp turns. He didn't play the radio on full volume as he usually would and instead he rode in peace and quiet. He didn't really mind that much.  
  
Earlier Max had told him that Jonathan, Steve and the Chief would be driving. Jonathan taking Nancy, Mike and Will with him. Steve taking Dustin and Lucas and the Cheif taking his daughter, Jane as the blonde learned.  
  
He only saw the kid around a few times and so when he asked his step-sister if the officer would be staying with them and who is that girl, the girl told him he wouldn't be staying with them and that the girl was actually his daughter named Jane, but everyone calls her El.  
  
He learned as well the names of the curly boy he saw with Steve a couple of times, Dustin, and the boy that looked very similiar to Nancy, Mike.  
  
He knew the rest of the group that would be going to the cabin. Not that he wanted to spend time with them or even talk to them, but he wanted to know with who exactly would his step-sister be spending a week with.  
  
The blonde knew he was getting close to the cabin, following the map he was given the day before, finding out it was Nancy who got the maps to make sure nobody gets lost.  
  
He could see the familiar BMW on the road ahead of him and he decided to follow the boy behind the steerling wheel, hoping that Steve knows exactly where he is going and so they wouldn't have to look for the cabin anywhere.  
  
And they did eventually reach the cabin in the next five minutes, the boy noticing the two cars standing there already, meaning that he and Steve were the last to arrive.  
  
Once he was driving to the cabin, looking for a place to park his car, he looked over at his still sleeping step-sister before he gently poked her shoulder. "Max."  
  
The girl shifted a bit in her sleep, her eyelids fluterring but not opening. "Max, we are here." He tried again, poking her shoulder one more time.  
  
She then opened her eyes, squinting them at the contact with the sunlight before she shifted a bit in her position, stretching her neck. "Finally."  
  
The boy formed a small hint of grin on his face as he parked the car behind the BMW, putting the break on but keeping the engine running. He didn't plan on staying for long.  
  
He watched the girl unfasten her seatbelt and reach for her backpack before she got out of the car to go to the back of the car to get her bag.  
  
The blonde was watching her in the mirror and that was why he jumped up from his seat when he heard a voice right next to his ear, thanks to his windows open.  
  
"Hey."  
  
"For fuck's sake, man. You are going to give me a heart attack one day." The blonde let out as he looked over at the brunette leaning against his car.  
  
"Sorry." The brunette said but the grin on his face showed no signs of being sorry. "You coming inside at least for a bit?"  
  
"Nope." The boy immediately shook his head, showing the brunette one of his best cocky grins. "Don't ya worry, pretty boy. I am going to have some good time alone. You can enjoy your time here with the kiddos." He then continued, fixing his sunglasses.  
  
The brunette was just about to reply when the redhead's head popped up into the next window. "I am gonna go now."  
  
The boy whipped his head around, giving the girl a nod. "Have fun." He replied, trying his best not to sound sarcastic. The girl gave him a small smile and he watched her walk away to her friends.  
  
He then turned back at boy who was still leaning against his car. "I will stay somewhere close. If you will want to find me, just look around." He annouced, seeing hints of relief and happiness wash over the brunette.  
  
That definitely didn't help to the mess of feelings that the blonde already felt for the boy.  
  
"I guess I better keep my eyes open." The brunette replied before he peeled himself away from the car, the small grin still placed on his face.  
  
The two of them then shared a short wave as the blonde drove away from the cabin.  
  
——  
  
And so the blue eyed boy's week started. Parking his car by the river, he went to explore the forests, the roads, the edge of the river. He saw a few more cabins around but they were quite far away from each other.  
  
The boy eventually decided to stay quite close to the cabin, parking his car under a mountain by the river, finding a perfect spot for his tent.  
  
It was shielded from one side by the mountain but the sun could shine there from the other side. He had the river close to him as well, meaning he wouldn't get lost if he just follows the river.  
  
As he earlier found out, he also had the main road to the nearnest city just above the place he decided to stay at.   
  
His adventure started exactly there, going to the town even before he set up the tent, deciding he might need some supplies.  
  
He found a store, buying anything he could need or want, the boy then left his car in the parking lot and went to explore the city on his own.  
  
Finding a few more stores, a theater, two parks and even a music store. It wasn't exactly a small city but it wasn't too big either. It would do just fine.  
  
On Monday the boy started to settle a little more in the place he decided to stay at. Trying the water in the river, being quite surprised that it wasn't as cold as he expected. Probably because of the sun shinning right onto the surface.   
  
He spent the day still exploring, running around the forest, clearing his mind. He made sure to stay away from the cabin, not wanting to look like some creep lurking around.  
  
He thought about making a fire in the night but he decided against it, taking another blanket instead. He didn't want to set everything on fire by falling asleep and letting the flames take over.  
  
A day completely alone, away from everyone and everything was exactly something that the boy needed. He could lay around, listen to anything he wanted, read whatever he wanted, eat as unhealthy as he wanted.   
  
Just alone with his thoughts that were slowly being washed away by the sounds of the river and the forest around him.  
  
On Tuesday the blonde probably slept the longest in his life, waking up after noon which was quite strange for the boy who had a very light sleep and only needed a few hours of rest.  
  
He spent hours just in his tent, reading one of the two books he brought on this trip, one of the few books that belonged to his mother that the boy saved from his father. He had never read them before and he took the opportunity to do so.  
  
He actually liked reading, he found it quite calming.   
  
When he finally decided to go for a run, to get his daily excersice, it was almost dark outside. But he didn't mind, he wasn't scared of the dark.  
  
What did scare him however was the figure that appeared out of nowhere on the same path as he was. It had to mean that he was getting too close to the cabin or that someone was looking for him.  
  
He found out a few seconds later that it was indeed Jonathan who was looking for him.  
  
The blonde invited the other boy to his 'palace' as he called it. The two boys walked around a little, they listened to music, Jonathan actually listening to Billy's choices for once, the brunette asking about the book the blonde was reading.  
  
They eventually decided to make a small fire as well since Billy mentioned wanting to try it without everything catching on fire. He figured that if he had Jonathan with him, they could pay attention to the fire and then they can put it down before the blonde falls asleep.  
  
The blonde actually ended up watching the brunette make the fire since the photographer annouced it's not his first time making a fire from scratch. Billy was pretty impressed as he watched him, complimenting him once he actually started a fire, earning a wide smile from the brunette.  
  
He had to turn away from the brunette since he kept on staring at him, at the way his face looked like next to red flames, the red and orange flames hitting his face and making his features highlighted.  
  
The two ended up listening to the crackling fire and the quiet surroundings around them, the blonde almost falling asleep, trying his best to stay awake. Jonathan noticed and took it upon himself to leave back to the cabin.  
  
Billy hadn't offered him to stay because he knew he wouldn't, he had his friends and a girlfriend to get back to.  
  
On Wednesday the boy finally decided to spend a whole day in the city. He left as soon as he woke up, deciding to eat at the local diner there, going for the classic pancakes. He then went to the theater, going to see a movie called 'Splash'. He heard about it for the first time and he actually liked the movie even though he found himself staring at the actors rather than paying attention to the movie.  
  
He found Daryl Hannah attractive but he also found Tom Hanks attractive. It seemed as if he was slowly accepting that he might be attracted to both genders even though it was still a bit confusing to the male. It was more that he thought Jonathan was attractive than any other male. He didn't exactly pay attention to others either.  
  
He then found himself exploring the parks, walking around the place, watching the kids and dogs running around. He kind of wanted a dog or some animal in general but his dad would never allow it.  
  
The boy finished his trip to the town by going to the shop again, shopping for more things he wanted, buying even more unhealthy food since he decided to treat himself.  
  
On Thursday right after the boy woke up, he immediately felt that it was hotter than the days before. Probably the hottest day of the days he spent here. And so it didn't surprise him that much when he saw the whole group hanging out around the river.  
  
He himself wanted to go for a swim but it was too cold even for his own liking, he did however sat on the edge of the river, letting his feet meet the cold water.  
  
That was when he noticed the group setting up blankets around the river, clearly getting the same idea as him.  
  
The boy quickly stood up, not wanting to be seen or talked to by any of the members of the group but before he managed to go back to his tent, the youngest Byers spotted him and waved in his direction.  
  
Billy waved back instantly, not being able to bring himself to ignore the boy. He liked him.   
  
The young Byers motioned for him to come to the place where they were at but the blonde just shook his head slightly, his eyes falling onto the photographer who was laughing at something his girlfriend had said.  
  
The blonde then went back to his tent, spending the rest of the day alone in his tent, pushingthe images of the kids laughing, the couple laughing out of his head.  
  
——  
  
On Friday the boy saw his soulmate as soon as he woke up since Jonathan made the effort to make breakfast for Billy and bring it to him.  
  
The brunette then stayed with the boy for a little while, eating with him when the blonde made him eat something as well even after Jonathan's protests about him already eating his own breakfast.   
  
He then tried to get the blonde to go with him back to the cabin, saying that it's their last day here, offering him to join them. But the boy refused immediately, not wanting to spend the night with people that don't like him.  
  
The disappointed look on Jonathan's face didn't go unnoticed by Billy and he felt that no matter how hard he tried to be good for the other boy, he kept on failing all the time.  
  
It made him frustrated and he found himself telling Jonathan to go back to the cabin without even realizing so. Another sad look appeared on the brunette's face and the blonde thought about drowning in the river.  
  
The photographer left and Billy spent his entire day in the tent, drowning in his hatred towards himself and everything else around him.  
  
His self loathing got interrupted when he heard footsteps around his tent. He figured Jonathan must have been back and the boy sat up from his lying position.  
  
He then crawled towards the front of the tent, peaking his head outside to take a look. It wasn't dark yet but it would be soon, it must have been around 6pm.  
  
The boy looked around and his eyes fixed on the small figure standing next to his car, looking inside. It definitely wasn't Jonathan.  
  
"You lost?" He called out, his eyes not moving from the redhead standing a few meters away from him. The girl stayed still for a few seconds before she turned around, facing the boy. She was too far away for him to see her face but even like this, he could tell something was up with the girl.  
  
"No, I was trying to find you." She started as she slowly walked towards the tent with her head low.  
  
"Why?" The boy question, biting his tongue to keep himself from making some dumb or mean comment. He knew the two of them were getting better at this whole sibling thing and he didn't want to screw it up.  
  
The girl finally got close enough for the boy to see her face and when she finally raised her face to look at him, reaveling the red puffy eyes, the boy really wished he had drowned in the river.  
  
Before he could say anything else, the girl was pushing past him, entering the tent without another word. The boy let her enter even though his throat was closing on him. He just knew the girl was upset and it wasn't the first time he had seen her upset, but there was just something about her coming to him, to her step-brother, that made him feel something he couldn't place.  
  
"What's up, Red?" He chose the same approach he did when the girl came to him the first time, telling him that she got marked. It worked that night and so he figured it could work this time too.  
  
The redhead crossed her legs as her fingers played with one of the blankets. "I found my soulmate." She said queitly, weakly, sounding as if she was holding back tears.  
  
The boy knew other people would congratulate the girl, tell her how amazing it is, how soulmates are imporant for you. But the boy wouldn't. He himself ignored his soulmate for months before finally allowing him to enter his life properly.  
  
"Who is it?" He just then asked, trying to get his head around the situation properly. _Maybe Lucas? Or Dustin?_  
  
"It's El." The redhead let out quietly and now it definitely sounded more like a sob. He was a bit glad that the girl was looking down so she didn't see his horrified expression once he realized his step-sister might be about to cry right in front of him.  
  
"And she doesn't like me, she doesn't even speak to me on her own. I don't know why! I didn't do anything." The girl started rambling and shaking softly, using her sleeve to wipe her nose as the tears started to spill from her eyes down onto her cheeks.  
  
The boy was staring at the girl, his mind running on full speed as he thought about something to say, something to do to soothe the girl. She was turning away from him, probably not wanting him to see her cry.  
  
He slowly reached his hand out, placing it on the girl's shoulder blade as an attempt to calm the girl down. He remembered that was the exact spot Jonathan always placed his hand when he tried to calm him down.  
  
To his surprise the redhead didn't flinch away or slapped his hand away, it seemed as if she even leaned into the touch and so the boy dared to rub small circles at the spot his hand was placed.  
  
He continued to do so, rubbing small circles onto the girl's back, watching the process of her slowly calming down.   
  
Only after she seemed to be calm enough, he dared to speak again."Does she know?"  
  
The girl gave him a small shake of head, rubbing her eyes with her hands. "We were all talking, telling each other stories and she said she heard a few girls yesterday at the store. And then she said my word and it started burning." The girl said in one breath, clearly wanting to get it all out. "I said I was going for a walk and I walked here."  
  
He had wanted to ask why she came to him, why she trusted him to see her like this, but he didn't. This wasn't about him and his questions, this was about her.  
  
"Are you going to tell her?"  
  
"I don't know."  
  
The boy nodded slightly, understanding where the girl was coming from. He realized his hand was still placed on her back and he slowly pulled it back, letting it fall onto his lap. "I didn't tell Jonathan. He found out because I said his words and he freaked out, realizing that he said mine months ago." He spoke, remembering the night that seemed so far away.  
  
Max was watching him, clearly interested since he didn't share much with her, especially not about his soulmate. The boy had a feeling that sharing his own experience might help the girl and so he decided to just stop worrying about everything and let her in for once.  
  
"We weren't friends before that, at all. I knew who he was, he knew who I was. But we didn't talk because I ignored him once I found out he was my soulmate. And then he found out and I thought he hated me." He started, shifting a bit in his position. "But then he came by, wanting to be friends and I kept on being a dick to him until he called me out on my bullshit." The boy continued, a small grin appearing on his face at the memory.  
  
"And he gave me another chance at being friends and you know, here we are." He finished, trying to sound sarcastic but he was sure the girl knew what he wanted to say. She knew the two boys were close.  
  
"So even if you now think she doesn't like you, it might change in the future." He finished, forcing a small smile on his face.  
  
The girl was watching him this whole time, a hint of some sort smile playing on her own features. "Thanks, Billy." She then said and the boy almost choked when he realized this was the softest, nicest way she spoke to him.  
  
The boy just gave her a nod, not knowing what else to say. He then watched the girl crawl out of the tent and he thought about what she is going to do. If she is going to tell the girl or not, if she is going to tell someone else or not.  
  
"It's dark, I don't want to go alone." The redhead's voice interrupted his thoughts and the boy turned to look at the girl that was poking her head back into the tent.  
  
He made his way out of the tent as well, noticing the dark the girl was talking about. They must have been in there for longer than he thought since it was already dark.  
  
"You scared of the dark?" The boy said, wiggling his eyebrows jokingly at the girl who rolled her eyes, getting her usual attitude back.  
  
"Maybe." She admitted, shifting on her feet.  
  
"Cute." He chuckled softly, dodging the arm that was trying to push his side. He then started walking and nodded to the girl, telling her to follow him back to the cabin.  
  
——  
  
The two step siblings walked in silence, the blonde keeping close to the girl since she admitted being scared of the dark.   
  
He wouldn't make fun of her, he, himself used to be scared of the dark when he was young. He was scared of the dark and the monsters that might hide in the dark. His mother then made him believe that monsters don't exist.  
  
Around that time he stopped being scared of the dark and started being scared of his father.  
  
They reached the cabin in a few minutes since the boy didn't park the car that far away and he knew a clear path to the cabin, not wanting to wander around like some lost animal.  
  
His eyes explored the cabin in front of him, seeing the light pouring out of the windows and the figures behind it. He kept on walking beside the girl until they were only few feet away from the cabin.  
  
He then watched the girl climb up the steps to the cabin, stopping on the porch to turn around and face the boy that was still standing there. It looked as if she was trying to decide what to say, almost as if she thought about inviting him inside.  
  
The boy watched the girl with interest, his hands placed in his pockets as he waited for her to say something, not leaving immediately for once. "Thanks for walking me." The girl then just said, her hand on the handle as she watched the boy.  
  
He nodded slightly, a hint of grin showing on his face. "Remember what I said." The boy then reminded her, not wanting for her to beat herself up over her soulmate.  
  
The girl nodded as well, opening her mouth just to close it again when the door opened and revealed the Wheeler girl standing behind them. "I told you I heard someone." She said, more to the people behind her than to the two siblings standing in front of her.  
  
Her eyes then fell onto the girl before they shifted to the boy that was still standing a few feet away from the cabin. "Are you two coming inside?" She then asked, eyeing both of them.  
  
Flashes of surprise and horror spread over the boy's face as he imagined himself in that small space with all the kids. "Uh, nah." He quickly managed to let out, shifting on his feet as he started to turn around to go back to his own little place.  
  
"You could though. If you want." The redhead spoke again, sounding a bit unsure but when the boy turned his head back around and locked his eyes with the girl, they were almost welcoming and it made the boy feel even more strange than before.  
  
He knew that Jonathan had wanted him to come inside and now it seemed as if his sister was inviting him inside as well. Even his own soulmate's girlfriend was inviting him inside.  
  
The boy was eyeing the two females standing by the door, not moving anywhere, just watching him. As if they just waited for him to come inside.  
  
A small sigh left the boy's body as he took a hesitant step towards the cabin, not even knowing if he is going inside or not. He did the math. There were more people that wouldn't want to see him than the ones that wouldn't mind.  
  
Jonathan wouldn't mind, Max clearly wouldn't, he was sure Will wouldn't mind either and apparently Nancy wouldn't mind as well.  
  
But there were still Dustin, Lucas, Steve, Mike and his step-sister's soulmate.  
  
The majority would mind and that was scaring him a little.  
  
A small figure appeared next to the teenage girl's side and once the blonde recognized Will he knew he was fucked.  
  
He couldn't turn back now when he saw the smile that showed on the boy's face. "Hey!"  
  
"Hey, little man." The blonde replied instantly, the uneasiness he felt was fading away a little bit, just a little bit. It always did whenever he saw a member of the Byers family.  
  
"We were wondering if you will ever show up." The boy then teased, leaning against the door frame as he watched the older boy.  
  
"It wasn't my plan." He admitted as he slowly walked to them, climbing up the stairs to take a place next to his step-sister, still feeling unsure about his decision.  
  
"We are just about to teach the others more about Dungeons & Dragons, you two came just in time!" The boy then exclaimed, waving his hand as he hurried back inside, suggesting for them to follow him.  
  
"You got yourself in some deep shit now." The short haired girl muttered, making the boy chuckle slightly as he watched his step-sister enter the cabin as well.  
  
His eyes flickered back to the forest, thinking that he still has a chance to run away if he tried to be really quick. But his thoughts were ripped apart when the girl spoke again. "Jonathan will be happy to see you."  
  
 _Fuck my fucking life._ He thought as he followed the Wheeler girl inside, closing the door behind him with his head low. Once he closed the door, he whipped his head up, his eyes meeting all of the figures standing in the room. The kids crowded up around a table, the two teenager boys sitting on a couch and the teenage girl walking to them.  
  
It was as if everyone stopped doing whatever they were doing before and they were all just staring at the blonde. It was so quiet, it was almost painfull. He could feel all the stares on him, some were welcoming, some not so much.  
  
"What is he doing here?" A black haired boy with a bowl haircut spoke first. His guess was that it was Mike, the teenage girl's younger brother.  
  
His guess was right since it was the girl who replied him. "I invited him in."  
  
"Why would you do that?"   
  
"Yeah, Nancy. What the hell?" Now the two other boys spoke and Billy didn't have to guess who they were since he knew. The first voice belonged to Lucas and the second voice belonged to his friend, Dustin.  
  
The blonde was still standing right by the door, his hand just a few centimeters away from the handle if he decided to turn around and walk away. But he knew he would feel weak if he just gave up so quickly.  
  
His blue eyes found the redhead sitting next to them, her head sunk low as she looked on the floor. They then shifted to the boy sitting next to her, the boy that was one of the few that was welcoming him, asking him to join them.  
  
He took a sharp breath when his eyes finally found Jonathan who looked at him curiously, probably trying to find out if the boy is going to fight for it and stay or run away.  
  
"He walked back with Max and she invited him in as well." The teenage girl continued, shrugging slightly as she reached for a cup of tea placed on a coffee table, bringing it up to her lips as she ignored the offended glares she was given from the boys.  
  
Her ability to not give a single shit about anything was bringing a small smile onto the blonde's features.  
  
He kind of understood what everyone saw in her.  
  
"I thought you hated him." The curly boy's voice echoed through the room again as he pointed at the girl sitting beside him.  
  
Something curled up inside of Billy, clenching him from inside. He had never heard the girl say out loud that she hated him, he had never said out loud that he hated her. Because he didn't. And the thought of her going around, saying that she hates him was making his throat close again.  
  
"I never said that!" She then called out and relief washed over the blonde.  
  
"Did you just forget what he did to Steve? And Lucas?" The boy with the bowl hair cut spoke again, looking both angry and annoyed at the same time.  
  
The blonde eyes found both of the mentioned boys. Steve was looking at him with interest showing in his eyes and Lucas was shifting his gaze between Billy and his step-sister.  
  
"Maybe you could just hear him out? Give him a chance?" The photographer's voice finally cut through the atmosphere, making all the heads turn on him.  
  
Billy could see the younger Byers nodding, supporting his brother and he questioned what he did to deserve that. He didn't deserve any of this, he didn't deserve a chance. Or so he thought anway.  
  
"Why are you taking his side?" The Sinclair boy spoke again, eyeing the brunette that was shifting in his position on the couch, his brown eyes fixed on the blonde.  
  
"Yeah, Jonathan! I saw you around with him."   
  
"Are you friends or what?"  
  
The boys started bombarding Jonathan with questions and angry glances, first the Wheeler boy and then the curly haired boy, followed by the boy his step-sister liked so much. There was that girl sitting next to the boy with the bowl hair cut but she kept quiet all the time, just watching everything.  
  
Then there was Max who looked fucking sad again, Nancy who tried to calm them down just as Will did and Steve who just looked a bit lost at this point.  
  
"No! Will, are you taking his side too?"  
  
"I don't understand, Jonathan!"  
  
The blonde was dozing off, his hand placed on the door handle. He wasn't properly paying attention to whatever they were saying but he did catch some things. He knew they were questioning the Byers boys and his step-sister, not understanding why they should give him a chance.  
  
He then made another mistake during the night. Looking away from the redhead who was angrily saying something to her friends, he found Jonathan's eyes and if his throat wasn't clenching before, it definitely was now.  
  
The boy looked so sad that Billy could feel it from across the whole room. And the blonde knew exactly what was going through his mind. All of the kids were questioning him, acussing him, and he didn't say anything. Because Billy made him promise that he wouldn't say anything, wouldn't tell anyone else that they are soulmates.  
  
But now they were standing here, the kids yelling all over each other and the brunette just sitting there, looking at the blonde with almost pleading look in his eyes.  
  
Billy knew he wanted to tell them before, that he didn't want to have any secrets. And maybe if they told them before, this all could have been different.  
  
The blonde snapped out from his thoughts as he focused on what was going on again, his eyes shifting from his soulmate to his step-sister and back again.  
  
He could hear someone saying 'Why are you giving him a chance?' and he didn't even know who it was but he could see Jonathan was looking for the right words to say and not finding any, just looking even more sad.  
  
"Because we are soulmates." The boy let out without even realizing so. The power Jonathan had over him was scaring him sometimes. Because now everyone knew, everyone went silent and stared at him, everything just became awkward.  
  
But he decided that the look of thankfullness and happiness in the brunette's eyes was worth it.  
  
——  
  
After Billy's confession, everyone was silent for a while, just looking from the blonde back to the brunette. He could see that all of the kids but Max and Will were shocked by this news. The looks of surprise on their faces were quite priceless.  
  
When he looked at the teenagers on the couch, he could very well see that even Steve was a bit surprised by this news but he didn't look as surprised as the kids. And when the blonde finally looked at Nancy, she just looked a bit curious, not surprised at all. She probably figured it out just as his step-sister did.  
  
"Does that really change anything?" The boy with the curls spoke again and before Billy could finally speak up for himself and say something, the youngest Byers spoke first.  
  
"Let's take a vote. We always do that, don't we?" He asked, looking right at Dustin who nodded a bit after a few seconds.  
  
The small boy then turned around a bit, his eyes finding the blonde who was standing right next to the door, he then nodded just in the slighest towards the door, signaling for Billy to leave when their cast their little vote.  
  
The blonde wanted to get angry, wanted to get angry about them casting some stupid vote about him, but when he gave more thought to it, he deserved the way they were treating him. He was realizing it now more than before.  
  
And he knew the only reason he was doing this was to make the ones he actually cared about, Will, Jonathan and Max happy.   
  
So he accomplied and left the cabin, giving a glance in Jonathan's way just before he left. The boy closed the door behind him and walked back down the stairs to sit down on the first step.  
  
He was looking down at his legs, rethinking if all of this was worth it. If better realitonship with Max was worth it, if friendship with Jonathan was worth it, if wanting to be more like Jonathan was worth it.  
  
He knew there wore pros and cons but he also felt that there were more pros to it.  
  
The boy was letting the cold wind hit his face as he sat outside, digging his boots to the ground. He then heard the door open and he didn't even turn around, figuring out it was probably Jonathan going after him as he almost always did.  
  
That was why he was surprised when he saw Steve sitting down beside him onto the step. The blonde watched him with his eyes narrowed, watching how the boy reached into his pocket and pulled out cigarettes with a lighter, taking one for himself and then offering another to the blonde.  
  
His gaze shifted from the other boy's face to the cigarette and back to him until he took the offered cigarette. He wouldn't normally take it but he had left his own back in the tent and he really needed a smoke right now.  
  
"Didn't know you smoked." He then let out as he watched Steve light up his own cigarette before passing the lighter to the blonde who did the same and returned the lighter to its owner.  
  
"There is probably more things that you don't know about me."   
  
"Fair enough." The blonde shook his head slightly as a small chuckle escaped his throat. He then took a long drag of his cigarette, feeding his addiction and he felt a little better immediately. "Aren't you supposed to be in there voting some shit?"  
  
"Already casted my vote."   
  
"Mhm." The boy watched the brunette next to him, trying to figure out why exactly he came out here. Did he just go for a smoke and decided to share it with Billy when he saw him? _No, he knew he was here.  
_  
"You here for an apology?" The blonde asked as he took another drag of the cigarette he was given.   
  
"You giving me one?"  
  
The blonde stayed silent for a few seconds, thinking about it as he flickered his cigarette before answering. "Not for hitting you. But for losing control." The boy let out silently, taking in more nicotine.  
  
The other boy stayed silent for a little while as well before speaking again. "Fair enough." He repeated the phrase the blonde used before, probably realizing this was as far as an apology he would get from Billy.  
  
"What was your vote anyway?" The blonde spoke again after taking another drag of his cigarette, blowing up the smoke slowly.   
  
The brunette looked over at the blonde, taking drag from his own cigarette. "That you can come in as long as you are not acting like a dick."   
  
The blonde chuckled a bit, nodding slightly as he shifted a bit in his position. "Fair enough." He used the words once again, feeling a little more confident after learning the other boy wasn't going to be angry with him if he did end up going inside.  
  
The two of them didn't speak after them, both finishing their cigarettes and watching their surroundings. Their own little silent bubble got interrupted when the door opened again, this time it was really Jonathan who walked down the stairs as well.  
  
The brunette that was sitting next to the blonde stood up once Jonathan reached them, annoucing them that he is going back inside. Steve and Billy then shared a quick look as the brunette went inside and gave the blonde a small nod.  
  
Billy then turned back around to face his soulmate that was standing right in front of him.   
  
He was just about to say something, ask how it is going, ask if the boy is glad he told his friends, ask if he is mad about it. But he didn't get a chance at doing that since the boy was already leaning down for a hug.  
  
This was another thing that the boy had to get used to, hugs. From Jonathan, from Joyce, probably even Will in the future.  
  
This time the boy bit back any 'Gross' comment and just went along with it, wrapping his own hands around Jonathan's waist. It was such an awkward angle with Jonathan standing and leaning down for the hug, his head almost placed on top of the blonde's head and the blonde having his hands wrapped around the other boy's waist, having to bring him closer to even wrap his hands around him properly.  
  
He kept the hug going for a few seconds before he slowly pulled back, his eyes meeting the other boy's exposed skin on his stomach. He then watched the boy stand back up and fix his shirt.  
  
"Thanks for doing that." The boy then finally spoke, a small warm smile playing on his lips. "I know you didn't want to tell anyone else so I realize it must have been hard."  
  
"Not that hard." The blonde admitted immediately. "All I had to see was your miserable face and I was done for."  
  
"Whipped."  
  
"Fuck off." He laughed as he pushed the boy slightly, making him laugh along with him.  
  
The brunette calmed down his chuckles after a few seconds and he looked at the blonde again, with more serious face now. "You can come in."  
  
A flash of surprise showed across the blonde's features, he really expected their little vote to end up being against him. "Really?"  
  
"Only Mike and El ended up being against it. Dustin and Lucas were against it but their changed it after Will's remarks." The photographer started, his eyes never leaving the blonde sitting in front of him. "And because Max said you would apologize to Lucas." He then finished, a little more seriously and quietly than before.  
  
A small wrinkle fromed onto the boy's forehead as he frowned a little when he heard that his step-sister was acting for him, saying he would do something even though he didn't agree to it.  
  
Apologizing to the boy. _Gross_.  
  
But now that he was thinking about it, with Jonathan standing right in front of him and two other kids waiting inside for him, it was probably the best thing he could do.  
  
He wouldn't apologize for not wanting the girl to hang out with him, he saw very well that he made her upset. But even he knew that his actions that one night weren't the best. Pushing him against a shelf, yelling in his face just as his own father did many times.  
  
The blonde flinched at the thought of him being the same as his father and that was when he decided to apologize.  
  
And so he gave the smallest nod to his soulmate and stood up.  
  
——  
  
The second time he entered the cabin, it didn't feel as weird as it did for the first time. But it was almost the same since everyone was looking at him again, trying to explore every inch of his face.  
  
The boy looked over all of them and felt the uncomfortableness creeping up onto him again. His eyes found the redhead's ones and he saw that they were filled with hope, the girl hoping he would do what she said he would.  
  
He then shifted his gaze back to the boy sitting right next to his step-sister. He had his arms crossed and he was watching the blonde just like everyone else, clearly waiting for the promised apology.  
  
Billy kind of wanted to laugh at himself and at the situation he got himself into. Damn his soulmate and his step-sister.  
  
"Sorry, kid." He then got out of himself, wanting to get over it as quickly as possible. He felt uncomfortable enough and everyone giving him a hard time wasn't really helping.  
  
The boy was still looking at him, even frowning a bit but the blonde watched how the girl placed her arm onto the boy's hand, giving him a small smile that said 'I told you so.' and the boy relaxed a bit.   
  
"Okay." He then said and it seemed to be the last step of accepting Billy in for this night since everyone seemed to relax a little, some even finally looking away from the blonde.  
  
Billy wondered if his step-sister was Lucas's soulmate because the boy seemed to be as 'whipped' for her as he was for Jonathan.  
  
A warm hand squeezed his shoulder and he recognized Jonathan's touch immediately, leaning a bit into the gesture before the photographer was leaving, taking his place back onto the couch.  
  
"Can we get started now?" The Wheeler boy spoke again, tapping onto a table in front of him and the blonde could see the game spread across it.  
  
He still didn't know what he is supposed to do, what they expect him to do. Is he supposed to go sit down next to the other teenagers? Is he supposed to stay away? Is he supposed to introduce himself to someone?  
  
He was standing there, looking a little lost and he almost jumped up in surprise when a girl with curls on her head appeared next to him, a mug in her hands, suggesting that she was coming back from the kitchen.  
  
"Vote passed."  
  
"Clearly." The boy replied instantly, not wanting to sound harsh but _what the hell was he supposed to reply to that? Didn't she vote against anyway?  
_  
The girl was watching him, curiosity showing in her eyes. "Jane."  
  
"Billy." He said even though she must have known who he was, and he knew who she was. Max's soulmate. But he did feel all the eyes on him again and he wanted to play nice, he needed to play nice for the three people in this room he actually cared about.  
  
He excpeted this was the end of their conversation but the girl clearly had different plans since after she took a sip from her tea, she spoke again. "You are scared."  
  
"Scared?"  
  
"Scared."  
  
"Why should I be scared?" The boy frowned slightly, straightening up a bit as he stared at the girl in front of him.  
  
"Because you did bad things."  
  
He blinked once or twice, his tongue running over his teeth as he tried to figure out why the girl was talking to him this way, so up front, so strangely. He almost wanted to laugh at her and the conversation he was in. He didn't know what happening anymore.  
  
"I did bad things too." She then continued when he didn't say anything and the blonde was getting more confused by each second.  
  
 _Those kids are so fucking weird.  
_  
"El, come on, we are starting." The boy with the bowl hair cut called out for her, clearly wanting to stop this conversation and the blonde was actually glad to hear his voice for once.  
  
He watched the girl leave, his eyes following her until she sat down next to the boy around their game.  
  
The boy then took a few steps froward as well, wanting to get a look at what campaign they were playing. He looked over the game board, he recognized a few figures but he definitely never saw a small car toy used while playing this game before.  
  
"What's that?" He asked before he could stop himself, pointing to the car toy placed on the game board.  
  
"Yeah, Dustin. Please explain." The Wheeler boy spoke again, sounding sarcastic and annoyed as he looked over the car toy.  
  
"That's Max's figure." The boy with the curls replied as if it was obvious.  
  
"A car toy?" The blonde raised his eyebrow, trying to figure out what his step-sister's character was.  
  
"For Zoomer." Now it was Lucas who replied, followed by Max's nodding.  
  
"That is not even a real character."The boy laughed softly, shaking his head a bit. _Of course she would make her own character._   
  
"What do you know about this anyway?" The girl hit him back, raising her own eyebrows curiously.  
  
"More than you do. Clearly." He replied but it sounded more playfull than harsh.  
  
The boy then looked over the characters again, noticing all the classic figures were there. Paladin, Cleric, Ranger, Bard and even Mage.  
  
"So who is the Dungeon Master?" He had asked, earning more surprised looks from all of the kids.  
  
"You actually know how to play?" Dustin asked curiously, clearly being interested by this new absorvation.  
  
"It's been a while since I played but I sure do." The boy replied, trying to sound as nice as possible since he could feel his step-sister literally boring her eyes into him.  
  
"Do you want to play with us?"  
  
"Will!"  
  
"What?" The small boy threw his hands up after Mike called out his name. "You wanted to teach El anyway."  
  
"He can't just come here and become a member out of nowhere!" The boy replied frustratedly, raising his voice a bit.  
  
"Listen, kid. I don't want to be a member of anything, I was just interested in something I haven't seen in a long time." The boy replied, now sounding a little harsh and he intented to. Just because he was trying to be nice, it wouldn't mean he would let him raise his voice at Will when he was there to stop it.  
  
The Wheeler boy didn't say anything in return and he didn't look at the blonde either, he just grabbed the Dungeon Master sheets and started the game with his friends.  
  
The blonde felt so weird, he almost felt as if he could start crying. Trying his best and still not being enough. He felt as if he would vomit if the kids tried to start a conversation with him.  
  
Another touch on his shoulder made him jump a bit and he looked at the source of the touch, his eyes widening a bit when he found Nancy standing next to him.  
  
"Come sit with us." She then said, handing him a cup of tea and walked back to the couch, placing herself next to Jonathan, opposite Steve who was sitting on the other couch. He could see the Monopoly board placed between them.  
  
He stood there shocked for a few seconds, the cup warming his fingers. The girl kept on surprising him all the time. First she invited him in and now she was giving him tea and offering him to interrupt them even more.  
  
Just a few days ago, the boy was sure she hated him but now he didn't know what to think. He didn't know what to think of anything anymore.  
  
But he stopped his thinking process and just followed the girl, sinking down onto the couch next to Steve, opposite Jonathan. It felt strange but not that much.  
  
And so he found himself playing numerous games of Monoply with the teenagers, Steve winning two times and Billy winning the other time. Watching the kids play Dungeons & Dragons, Will and Dustin ending up talking to him a little more about it, telling him about their campaign and somehow, during the evening, the boy found himself sitting between his step-sister and the youngest Byers, watching the game up close and trying to help the girl with her decisions.  
  
No one seemed to mind anymore but the Wheeler boy. But after the blonde passed his test consisting of questions such as 'What is considered the most diverse class in the worlds of Dungeons & Dragons?' or 'What is the most important thing in Wizards' lives?' or even 'What is the power of the gods called?', the boy seemed satisfied enough to let the blonde watch and help a little.  
  
Never in his life he would have imagined himself sitting around with a bunch of kids, his step-sister actually seeming to be happy to spend time with him, to play a game with him, and his soulmate watching him with a warm smile.


	12. Realization

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two abused boys share a bond they didn't ask for. Becoming close and questioning everything.
> 
> ——
> 
> Or: Since Billy isn't getting the redemption in the show, I am giving him one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys! I am so sorry about being gone for such a long time. I am graduating at the moment and studying is sucking the life out of me, I didn't have the mood or the time to write. :(   
> But I only have two more exams coming up so I will try to write and post new chapters as soon as I can.
> 
> Thank you for understanding and continuing this story! <3

_realization;_  
  
the fact or moment of starting to understand a situation.  
  
——  
  
Weeks passed after that night in the cabin. And things changed a bit.   
  
Jonathan and Billy still hung out like before, at their own little places, at Jonathan's house. But now the blonde could come over even when Will had some of his friends over. Now he could greet Nancy as well when he passed the couple in school.   
  
Him and Max were actually better than ever, talking to each other, Billy willingly spending time with her, Max asking how the hell he knew something about Dungeons & Dragons and the boy ended up telling her about his friend back in California who had a sick little brother and he taught them the game so they could play with him.  
  
Him and Steve didn't speak more often, didn't see each other more often. But they played fairly with each other during basketball, they shared a few lines in the showers, they shared a nod here and there when they passed each other.  
  
Him and Will saw each other a numerous times as well, reading comics, Billy driving him to the arcade when Jonathan was at work, him taking both Max and Will to the theatre to go see a movie and annoy his soulmate.  
  
He didn't talk to the other kids any more than he had to, he didn't feel the need to do so. But he did sometimes drive Max to the Sinclairs' house, something that he had never done before. He did greet Dustin that one time when he drove Max to the Wheelers' house and the boy was still outside. He did ask his step-sister how her soulmate situation is doing and he learned that the redhead told the other girl and she now wanted to spend more time with Max.  
  
And so he found the girl in his house a few times when their parents weren't home, he always greeted her and left them to whatever they were doing.  
  
He also sometimes spent his time with Tommy and the boys, mostly in school or during the basketball practise. He went to a party with them a few times as well, not having anything else to do when Jonathan was with his girlfriend.  
  
But right now, they boy was sitting on the floor in Jonathan's room, watching the other boy struggle with his homework. He gave up five minutes ago and was just drawing circles on the paper he was supposed to get work on.  
  
Jonathan was still trying but he gave up as well, throwing his pen away in frustration, making the blonde chuckle. "Bullshit, right?" The blonde then said, stretching his arms.  
  
The photographer nodded slightly, closing the book he had placed on his lap. "Let's take a break."  
  
"And by a break you mean let's not open it again, right?" The blonde asked, throwing the papers away as he stood up, stretching his legs since it hurt from sitting on the floor for so long.  
  
"Sure." The brunette laughed softly, taking the offered hand and standing up as well. "You know, for someone who works in the theatre, I haven't seen a movie in a while." The boy then said out of nowhere.  
  
"You want to go see a movie?" The blonde asked, raising his eyebrow as he took a sip from the drink he had placed on the beside table.  
  
"Yeah, why not?" The other boy shrugged, looking as if he tried to remember what movies are playing in the theatre at the moment. "I remember seeing some movie posters and Ladyhawke looked interesting."  
  
"Never heard of that."  
  
"Well, do you want to go see it?" The photographer asked, taking a sip from his own drink.  
  
"Now? It's 6pm, all of the school is going to be there." The boy said with a raised eyebrow, remembering that the most people always poured in from six to eighth pm.  
  
"Okay." Jonathan let out silently and sat back down, taking the notebook back into his hands as he went back to his homework, ignoring Billy for the next twenty minutes.  
  
The blonde eventually gave up on trying to start a conversation again, not understanding why the boy closed down on him so suddenly. But he clearly didn't want to talk to him anymore tonight and he sure as hell wouldn't keep on trying for hours.  
  
So he just got up and told his goodbye to the other boy, hearing a small 'Bye' from him. He then sighed a bit before leaving the house, trying to wrap his head around what just happened.  
  
He didn't want to go see a movie with Jonathan, _so what? Was that such a big deal?_  
  
——  
  
The boy had time to think about what happened over the night and he decided that even though he didn't want to keep going after Jonathan like a lost puppy, kissing his ass, he still wanted to spend time with him.  
  
And if that meant going to the movies with him to see some dumb movie, he would have to comply.   
  
That was why the boy was marching towards his soulmate who was standing next to his own locker. The blonde leaned against the lockers next to the smaller boy.   
  
"Hey."  
  
"Hey." The brunette replied, stuffing some notebooks into his bag as he barely spared the blonde a glance.  
  
"I have decided that going to see a movie wouldn't be such a bad idea." He then let out, keeping his eyes on Jonathan.  
  
"Okay, have fun." The photographer simply replied, shutting his locker as he turned to leave.  
  
"Hey, what the hell?" The blonde called out, quickly getting in front of the other boy so he couldn't run away. "I thought you wanted to go see a movie. With me." He added, a slight frown forming on his face.  
  
"I went to see it with Nancy yesterday." The brunette replied, sounding so small all of sudden.  
  
"If one doesn't come running, the other does, right?" The blonde spat out, feeling hurt by the fact the other boy just went right to Nancy about something he wanted to do with him.  
  
"Well, Nancy isn't afraid to be seen with me." The brunette spat right back before he turned on his heel and walked away from the boy.  
  
The blonde went to kick the lockers right next to him, groaning in frustration.  
  
So this was what it was about. Them not going anywhere in public, them spending time hidden from other people.  
  
He leaned against the lockers as he shut his eyes, he understood where Jonathan was coming from.  
  
But there was a big difference between them. Jonathan didn't give a shit about what people think of him, he didn't have a reputation that he was used to keeping.  
  
But Bily was, he was used to having a reputation his whole life. Mystery guy. Heartbreaker. Troublemaker. That was what he was used to.   
  
He didn't want to be known as the fag, the guy following Jonathan Byers everywhere.  
  
But the problem was that even though everything inside him was screaming at him that he didn't want that. He wanted exacly that.  
  
He wanted to be able to go with Jonathan anywhere without people staring and calling them names. He wanted to be with him.  
  
And after the boy finally came to terms with the fact that he likes the other boy, he wanted to be with him even more.  
  
He wanted to hang out at Jonathan's house, he wanted to go on road trips with him, he wanted to go to the movies with him, he wanted to spend time with him.   
  
And he didn't want to care about what people think or how many glares they send their way.  
  
He would fight anyone who dared to say something about them, about Jonathan.  
  
——  
  
The boy thought about skipping the next class because he had it with his soulmate but he knew that would mean he was running away, it would be showing weakness, showing that he is scared. He didn't want that.  
  
That was why he walked into the classroom with his head high, only sparing a glance to the 'Jancy table' as he called it. He then sat right into his spot next to Tommy, ignoring everyone through the whole lesson.  
  
He was one of the first people to leave the classroom once the lesson was done and the lunch break began. He usually went outside to smoke a cigarette, staying outside with the guys when they decided to follow him. Sometimes they stayed in the cafeteria, sometimes they hung out around in the parking lot, sometimes they left the school for the lunch break.  
  
Right now the boy was standing in the parking lot, smoking one of his cigarettes, inhaling and exhaling the smoke as he thought about everything.  
  
He knew what he was going to do, what he wanted to do. What he wanted to do to make his soulmate happy.  
  
But he hated it. He hated that Jonathan made him feel all of those things, he hated feeling the need to make the other boy happy, he hated how he was tearing apart everything he believed in.  
  
The boy threw away his cigarette, straightening his jacket as he grabbed onto his backpack, looking all over the parking lot.  
  
He could see the boys standing next to Tommy's car, laughing at something. It would be so easy just to walk up to them and do what he is used to do, what he thought he is supposed to do.  
  
He then moved his gaze to the door to the cafeteria and he let out a silent curse as he started walking back to the school.   
  
The boy opened the door with ease and walked inside, his eyes exploring the whole room until they found the trio he was looking for.  
  
Nancy, Steve and Jonathan. Sitting at their usual table with Jonathan eating whatever he prepared in the morning, Steve scrabbling something into his notebook with the girl helping him.   
  
They weren't looking at him, because why would they? He didn't really acknowledge them in school. He greeted them at the maximum. And now here he was, standing in the cafeteria, looking at the empty spot next to the photographer.  
  
He let out a small sigh as he let his feet lead him to the table, walking as slow as he could, wanting to have time to escape if he decided to change his mind.  
  
The boy was aware that some eyes were on him, some of the girls always watched him wherever he went, but now he could feel every single glare coming from different directions. He didn't know who they belonged to but they were uncomfortable.  
  
He straightened up a bit, flexing his arms as he finally reached the table, all of the three teenagers looking up at him. He could see surprise playing in Jonathan's and Nancy's eyes but there was no in Steve's. It made him wonder if the boy was just waiting for him to give in.  
  
"Mind if I join?" The blonde then let out, but it ended up sounding a bit more like an order than a question. His facial expressions showed that he didn't mean for it to sound so harsh and he was about to add something else but the girl was already taking her bag away from the table, making room for him.  
  
The boy then shared a quick look with his soulmate whose eyes warmed as he nodded in the slightest. Neither of them had to say anything because they both knew what it meant. That it meant Billy wants to spend time with Jonathan, that now officially Billy doesn't care if someone sees him with the boy.  
  
Jonathan very well knew the boy wasn't good with words, he was better with actions. The blonde's actions proved more than his words.  
  
The blonde then slowly sat down, right next to the photographer. He then looked over properly at the paper the two other teens were looking at, trying to find out what the other boy was supposed to be writing about.  
  
"World War II?" He then said once he recognized a few names in the paper.  
  
The other boy nodded slightly as the girl scrambled something into the paper. "I am getting lost in this, Steve. You know this topic isn't exactly my strongest." She let out, sounding almost frustrated.  
"Can I?" The blonde questioned, reaching his hand out a bit for the paper, waiting if the boy gives it to him or not. The boy eventually did hand him the paper along with the words 'I will kick you if you laugh.' which made the blonde chuckle a bit as he took the paper.  
  
He then scanned the paper for a few minutes until he set it down onto the table, reaching for the pencil the girl had placed next to her as he moved a little closer to his team mate.  
  
"It's not bad, there are just a few mistakes." He started pointing to a spot. "Japan attacked us in 1941, not in 1939 when the war started." He said, using a few other examples as he added to Nancy's writing on the paper.  
  
"Also, you might want to talk about something more interesting than just facts. Talk about something not many people know." He suggested as he returned the paper to the boy. "Back in California, just before I left, I wrote about Oskar Schindler. He was part of the Nazi party but he turned on them and saved thousand Jews. Those things are more interesting than when did what battle happen."   
  
The brunette in front of him was nodding as he stared at his paper, chewing his lip. "The book is called Schindler's List if you want to look it up. But it's depressing as fuck, so be prepared." The boy finished, playing with his ring as he leaned back a bit.  
  
"Thanks." The other boy then said as he put the paper back into his bag, giving the blonde an actual smile. "If I can't get through it, you gotta help me, man." He then added, the unspoken silent 'You owe me' showing in Steve's eyes.  
  
The blonde nodded in his direction before his blue eyes met the so familiar browns and they looked so happy, welcoming and warm, Billy wanted to drown in them.  
  
"Dungeons & Dragons, World War II. What else have you got up in your sleeve?" The Wheeler girl said as she took a bite of her sandwich that she pulled out of her lunch bag.  
  
"Many, many things." The blonde replied, flashing her with one of his best grins as all of the teens chuckled a bit.  
  
He thought he would be way more uncomfortable around Nancy and Steve but they were acting the same as they did without his presence, they didn't feel bad in his presence, not anymore.  
  
The boy was both surprised and confused, he thought they would feel uncomfortable with him and he would feel uncomfortable around them. But he didn't, not as much as he thought he would. Sure, he would be happier if it was just him and Jonathan but he didn't mind the other two anymore.  
  
It was making the boy's head spin as he leaned againt his elbow, letting the closeness of his soulmate wash over him as he listened to whatever the Wheeler girl was saying.  
  
——  
  
The blonde was finally leaving the school, making his way to his car as he already started to search his pockets for the cigarette he craved.  
  
Pulling up one cigarette from the pack, he lit it as he placed it into his mouth and reached his beloved car, leaning against it and taking a long drag from his cigarette.  
  
He had about five more minutes until his step-sister would be skating his way and the two of them would be going home.  
  
His eyes scanned the parking lot, seeing some of the cars leave as the teenagers hurried home, watching them sort into their groups and plan what they are going to do after school, he watched them happily walk away from the draining school.  
  
The boy also watched the middle schoolers pour out of the school and his blue eyes found the group of friends he was now quite familiar with. He watched his step-sister as she listened to something the curly boy and the boy she liked were saying to her while the two other boys walked along with each other, talking to one another.  
  
Taking another drag of his cigarette, the boy's eyes followed the little group, waiting for his step-sister to look his way and see he is already waiting for her.  
  
He flickered his cigarette, his gaze shifting to another group of kids, smaller one. This one was just boys, no girls. He watched them walk towards his step-sister and her friends. They were calling out something but he didn't hear them.  
  
The boy wondered if those were their friends but Max didn't tell him about anyone else than about the kids he already met and sort of knew. So that must have meant that she either didn't tell him everything or that they weren't friends.  
  
And once he saw the annoyed looks on everyone's faces, he knew that his latter suggestion was correct.  
  
More nicotine filled his lungs as the boy took another drag of his cigarette, his eyes never leaving the two group of kids that were now facing each other. He could see the strange boys were laughing and calling out something towards his step-sister and her friends but he didn't hear them.  
  
The boy could see how the redhead was holding onto Lucas's hand, pulling him away the same way she was pulling the curly haired boy. The Wheeler boy was calling out something right back at the other group while the smallest boy just stood there, almost hiding behind his friends.  
  
Billy shifted his head a little to the side, deciding if he is supposed to do something or not. He didn't mind the kids, he liked some, he didn't really care for others but he still knew them.   
  
The blonde took one more drag of his cigarette before he noticed one of the boys was pulling things out of his backpack, handing them to the other boys, putting them into their hands they smartly placed behind their backs, so the other group wouldn't see.  
  
A frown started to appear on Billy's face and he threw his cigarette away as he pulled himself away from his car and started walking towards the kids, watching them carefully.  
  
He still didn't say anything, he just watched them and walked towards them, being a few feet away from them when the boys started throwing what looked like paper balls at the youngest Byers.  
  
"Hey!" The blonde called out harshly, jogging towards the kids and standing next to them in the matter of three seconds. All of their heads were turned at him and he could see the surprise, the curiosity and the confusion in all of their faces.  
  
Some of the boys were starting to move and the blonde moved closer to them, staring at them with the coldest expression he could pull off. "Don't move." He then gritted through his teeth before turning around slightly to look at the short boy who was holding one of the paper balls.  
  
"Give it here."  
  
"It's okay, Billy." The young Byers was quick to assure, shaking his head slightly and to the blonde surprise it was the curly haired boy that snatched the paper ball out of Will's hand and handed it to the blonde.  
  
He then quickly unwrapped it once he had it in his hands, revealing the words 'Zombie boy' written inside with sketches that were anything but funny. His eyes started to twitch as he squeezed the paper in his hand, forming it back into a ball.  
  
The boys were still standing there but the blonde noticed they were stepping back a bit, probably because they were afraid of him. _Good_.  
  
"You think this makes you look cool?" The boy started, facing the kid that was standing the closest to him that was taller than the rest of the group. He guessed he was their little leader, he seemed like the type.  
  
"You think you and your little buddies are funny? That this makes you look tough?" The blonde spoke, taking another step towards the boy that was to Billy's surprise still standing his ground.  
  
He could see that the other boys weren't so brave and they were looking around, shifting on their feet, clearly panicking.  
  
"I can tell you that it only makes you look weak. Pathetic." The boy continued, his fingers playing with the paper ball in his hand.   
  
"At least Will has some real friends that went and looked for him, were there for him. I don't think you can say that, can you?" He said, looking all over the other boys, throwing the paper ball in the air before catching it again.  
  
"Stay away or we will test that theory." The blonde finished coldly, throwing the paper ball towards the group of boys who jumped away, fear spreading on their faces.  
  
The tallest boy finally looked a bit afraid too and he turned around to his little buddies and they were quick to run away, pushing each other around as they did so.  
  
"Dipshits." The blonde muttered under his breath, shaking his head a bit. He was just about to turn away and say something to the kids when to his horror, he felt small hands wrapping around his waist, hugging him from behind.  
  
He quickly whipped his head around, looking down to see Will's arms around him. The boy could also hear the very familiar laughter that belonged to his step-sister and he looked up from the boy for a second to see the redhead laughing. The others weren't laughing but there were smiles on both Lucas's and Dustin's faces as they pointed to the group that was running away. The Wheeler boy just looked satisfied.  
  
"Will. I have a reputation." The blonde then let out once he looked back at the small boy. There wasn't harshness in his voice, just playfullness.   
  
The boy did pull away and rewarded the boy with a smile that he was one hundred procent sure he didn't deserve. "Thanks, Billy."   
  
"Yeah, they were annoying us for weeks now. Shitheads." The curly haired boy chimmed in, earning nods from the other kids.  
  
"Should have just beaten them up, Max. I know you have it in you." The blonde let out, a smirk forming on his face as he nodded towards his car, implying that she should leave with him.  
  
He watched the girl say her goodbyes and once she was walking his way, the boy gave the other males a nod before he turned to go to his car by her side.  
  
——  
  
The blonde closed the door after himself once he was in the car, leaning into his seat as his gaze flickered from his sister to the four boys that were now walking to the direction of their bikes.   
  
He then searched over the parking lot, trying to find the other group but they were nowhere to be seen. They were probably long gone after getting face to face with him.  
  
His words were replaying themselves in his head and the boy was wondering where it all came from. He was describing himself. Making fun of others, trying to be the leader, thinking it's so funny. When it was dumb. Pathetic.  
  
The boy squeezed the steerling wheel, feeling the uncomfortableness creeping onto his neck. He thought about if someone from his old group of friends would go looking for him if he got lost. From the six boys he used to hang out with, he could only think of two that would, and he still wasn't sure about that.  
  
But Jonathan would. _Of course Jonathan would._  
  
It was always about the other boy. The other boy was making him realize all of these things, making him open his eyes and see things differently, making him act differently, act better, making him a better person.  
  
The blonde cringed at his thoughts, wondering if he was really changing, if he was acting better. He knew he didn't get as angry as before, he knew that. But he knew he still was easily ridden up. He could still get angry very easily.  
  
But then he looked over at his step-sister that was leaning her elbow onto the window, a small hint of smile on her face and he knew he was changing. She wouldn't be so comfortable with him if he wasn't.  
  
The boy shook away his thoughts as he started the car and started driving towards their home.  
  
"Thanks for doing that."  
  
"Hm?" The blonde looked over at his step-sister, searching her facial expressions. "You don't need to thank me, I am no savior of kids."  
  
"I know." The girl laughed softly, shifting in her seat. "But they were annoying us, well Will, for a while now and everytime we said something, they would just get more annoying." She admitted while rolling her eyes.  
  
"Let me know if they give you more shit. Will doesn't need that." The boy said, keeping his eyes on the road.  
  
He could see the girl nodding slightly from the corner of his eyes and he could see her leaning in towards him a little and his eyes widdened at the thought of her reaching for a hug.  
  
He had shared hugs with Jonathan, Joyce and Will now but him and Max weren't at that point. They were closer now, just like back at the start of their step-sibling relationship but they didn't hug.  
  
A flash of panic showed in his eyes but it was quickly gone when he watched her pull the windows down. She wasn't leaning in to give him a hug but to open the window.  
  
 _Thank fuck.  
_  
The boy then frowned a bit when he watched her unfasten her seatbelt and he was just about to ask her what she is doing when he realized what was happening and the words got stuck in his throat.  
  
She was leaning out of the window, letting the wind hit her face and her hair to go wild along with the wind.  
  
The girl used to do that when they were younger, when the boy started to learn how to drive on his father's car, when she joined him a couple of times, driving around with him in his father's car and then in his own car.  
  
She trusted him not to get them into a car crash, she trusted him not get them hurt. She trusted him in general.  
  
And watching her now, doing the same thing that she did when they were younger, letting her face meet the wind, being relaxed next to him, in a car with him again.  
  
He knew it meant that she trusted him again.  
  
——  
  
Once the two of them got home, the boy headed to his room, throwing the shirt he was wearing over his head, running his fingers through his hair as he looked over at himself in the mirror.  
  
Neither of the parents were home, meaning that the two siblings had some time on their own before they had to do whatever the parents wanted them to once they got home.  
  
Billy was planning on working out throught the whole afternoon, getting his muscles as sore as he possibly could. Lately he tried to lift more weight than before as if that would prove that he is still as tough as before, before he met Jonathan and before he realized that he likes him.  
  
The boy had already dealt with the fact that he does like him and decided to stop fighting against it. But he also made sure not to show any signs that would give him away, he didn't need to ruin the only friendship he cared about.  
  
He walked back to the kitchen, grabbing one of his beers from the fridge before drinking half of it in one sip. Putting the can on the counter, he made his way to the weights, reaching for the handle just as the phone started ringing.  
  
The blonde quickly skipped to the phone, picking it up as he answered. "Hello?"  
  
"Hey, Billy."  
  
The boy recognized his soulmate's voice immediately and he just had a feeling why he was calling.  
  
"What can I do for you?" He replied, reaching for the beer he placed on the counter before and taking another sip from it.  
  
There was a slight pause from the other side before the boy started talking again. "Will told me what you did. I just.." The photographer paused again and it seemed as if he didn't even know what to say to the blonde.  
  
"You didn't think this through, did you?" He interrupted the brunette as he chuckled softly, playing with the can in his hands.  
  
"Not really." The other boy admitted before continuing. "I just wanted to tell you to come over. I mean, if you want to." He got out quickly, waiting for the blonde to answer.

The blonde was studying the can in his hands as if it was the first time he had ever seen it, trying his best to ignore the hopefulness in Jonathan's voice.  
  
"Okay." The boy then replied after a few seconds of silence. "I will be there in a few."  
  
"Okay."  
  
Billy ended the call and finished his beer, he then went to knock onto his step-sister's door to tell her he is going over to Jonathan's to which she replied that her own soulmate is coming over anyway.

The boy then went to throw on some clothes before leaving his house to go into another house that he felt way more like a home to him.  
  
——  
  
The ride to the house was quick as always, the familiar houses and trees passing by, the boy only noticing them from the corner of his eyes.  
  
He parked his car in front of the house and got out, straightening his jacket as he closed the door behind him before making his way to the front door. Knocking on the door, the boy waited for someone to answer as he chewed on his lip.

It was a long time ago since he was nervous about entering the Byers' house. The last time was probably when the boy came over here for the first time. But now, that he had stood up for Will, he just knew the boy told about it to both his brother and his mother. And Billy didn't know what to expect from them.  
  
He didn't want any thank you, any thankful looks or gestures, he stood up for the boy because he wanted to and not because he wanted to get praise for it.  
  
The door flew open and the little boy the blonde was just thinking about appeared in front of him.   
  
"Hey, Will."  
  
"We found a cat! And it looks like it doesn't belong to anyone so we are probably keeping it!" The boy started rambling excitedly instead of a greeting.  
  
"Let me make the calls and then we can see if we keep him." The woman's voice called out right after her son and the blonde looked behind the little boy to see Joyce on the phone with someone.  
  
He then looked back at the little boy in front of him who was already pulling him by his sleeve and leading him into the house.  
  
The blonde eyes immediately fixed onto the little cat placed on the sofa with his soulmate sitting next to it, petting it gently. "Look, look, look!" The youngest Byers exclaimed loudly, clearly being excited about the possibility of getting a cat.  
  
"Shh, Will. You are going to scare him away." The photographer said softly as he kept on petting the cat.  
  
The youngest Byers then let go of the blonde's hand and joined his brother by the couch with Billy following right after him. He kneeled down in front of the sofa and sretched his hand out, giving the cat a chance to sniffle him if he wanted to.  
  
"Hey, little guy." The blonde then let out, using his most gentle voice since he didn't want to scare him away. He then slowly turned his hand over to pet the cat's hand. He was pleasantly surprised when the animal didn't pull away but leaned into his hand.  
  
A small smile made its way onto the blonde's face as he stroked the cat's fur softly, giving his head a little scratch. Only then he lifted his head to look up at the photographer to meet his surprised face.   
  
"Hey."  
  
"Hey." The brunette choked out and there was something in his voice and his eyes that the blonde just couldn't place and so he just decided to ignore it, for now.  
  
"Where did you find him?" He then asked, keeping his smile on his face as he stroked the cat who started to lick his palm.  
  
"In the woods, he was all alone. Mom is making the calls to find out if he belongs to somebody." The photographer informed the blonde whose eyes moved to the woman who finally hung up the phone.  
  
The woman gave the blonde a warm smile as she walked past him, giving his shoulder a squeeze before she wiggled the pack of cigarettes placed in her hand, nodding to the front door as a question if he is going to join her or not.  
  
The boy gave her a small nod as he stood up, giving the cat one more pet on the head before following the woman outside.  
  
He found her already leaning against the wall, putting one of the cigarettes into her mouth, the boy pulled out his own cigarettes and placed himself next to her.  
  
"Do you have a lighter?" She asked and the boy searched his pockets for a lighter but he couldn't find one. _Must have left it in the car._  
  
The blonde then looked into his pack of cigarettes to find a few matches inside. "I got you." The boy smirked as he pulled one of the matches out of the box and lit it up using the back of his teeth.  
  
He then proudly admired the match in his hand before using it to light both of their cigarettes. "Learned that back in California." They boy proudly let out as he waved with the match to make the fire go out, taking a drag from his cigarette at the same time.  
  
"Impressive." The woman laughed softly as she took a drag from her own cigarette.  
  
The boy kept his small smile on his face as they smoked their cigarettes in their own little bubble, following the routine they fell into over the past months.  
  
He could feel the woman's eyes on him and so he turned his head around a little, giving her a small frown as he waited for her to say something.   
  
Joyce stayed silent for a few seconds before she finally spoke. "Thank you for looking out for my boys."  
  
The blonde almost choked, straightening up a little as he knocked off the ashes from his cigarette. "You are welcome." He then let out, not knowing what else to say.  
  
She gave him another one of her warm smiles and the boy tried to return it the best way he could.  
  
——  
  
Once the two of them finished their cigarettes, they returned back to the living room to find the two boys still sitting on the couch, admiring the little cat.  
  
"Does he have a name?" The blonde asked once he joined them again, placing himself right next to his soulmate.  
  
The youngest Byers shook his head slightly as he looked over at the animal. "But we don't know if he belongs to someone or not, so we have to wait before naming him."  
  
"Well, so far, no one is seeming to be missing a cat. At least from what Hopper says. And Karen, who knows everything." The mother announced once she came back from outside and made her way to the kitchen.  
  
The mention of Karen made the blonde chuckle a bit and he stretched his hands before leaning more into the sofa. He then heard silent giggling next to him as well and he looked up to see the photographer's shoulders shaking with laughter.  
  
"Shut up." The blonde let out, using one of his hand to push the other boy a little.  
  
Jonathan gave him another chuckle and both of their gazes moved to the youngest Byers who stood up with the animal in his hands, announcing that he is going to find some toy for the cat before he disappeared into his room.  
  
A small smile that the blonde didn't even know of was placed on his face as he watched the kid happily carry the new possible addition to the Byers family.  
  
"I didn't know you are soft for animals."  
  
"I am not soft."  
  
"You are."  
  
"No."  
  
"It's adorable."  
  
"Ugh." The blonde shoved the photographer one more time but he just kept on laughing.  
  
"It's nothing bad. I was just a little surprised."  
  
"Why?" The boy frowned a little, not really understanding why it was so surprising that he liked animals.  
  
"I don't know. You helped Will today and now seeing you acting so nice. It's good to see."  
  
"Oh, right. You expected me to kick into an innocent animal because Billy is mean and can't act nice. I thought this crap was behind us." The boy angrily spat out as he quickly stood up, feeling insulted and hurt that his soulmate would even think that.  
  
A hand on his arm stopped him from going anywhere and pulled him back onto the sofa. The electricity from his soulmate touching him shot through his whole body.  
  
"I didn't mean it like that."  
  
"Sure you did." The blonde spat out again, not looking at the photographer at all. "I didn't, I promise." The brunette repeated himself, keeping his hand on the blonde's arm.  
  
"It's just that, you don't really show your emotions often and it was nice to see how you act around animals. I have never seen that before and it was nice, okay?"  
  
The blonde stayed silent for a few seconds before he gave in and nodded a little, properly sitting back down. "Okay."  
  
"And no one is seeing you like that anymore. Just you. So stop thinking that." The photographer then let out as he pulled his hand back from the blonde's arm.  
  
"Hm." The blonde mumbled, leaning into the couch as if he was trying to make the couch swallow him up.  
  
"Don't."  
  
"I am not doing anything." He let out, sounding a little more defensive than he thought he would.  
  
"Don't be grumpy."  
  
"I am not grumpy."  
  
"You are such a child."  
  
"No, I am not!" The blonde said, crossing his arms and that only proved Jonathan's point who just started laughing again.   
  
"I am glad you are having fun." The boy then let out again, feeling a smile creeping up onto his face as well.   
  
Once the two of them finished their pointless giggling, the blonde was watching his soulmate's face and he could see how the dimples on his cheeks started fading, his curved lips turning into a straight line again once the boy's face turned into a more serious expression. And Billy noticed the sparkles in his eyes stayed.  
  
"Thank you for standing up for Will." The boy then said, making the blonde look away for a moment before fixing his gaze on the photographer again. "I didn't do it so you would be thankful to me."  
  
"I know." The other boy said and the blonde just knew, he just knew the hug was coming and he let it happen for once, returning the hug for a second before he started to pull away but Jonathan's arms were holding him in place. He also didn't let the hug happen without his usual comment.  
  
"Gross."  
  
The smaller boy just shook his head a bit and gave him the smallest grin. "I believe there are layers to you that have yet to be revealed." He then said before letting go of the blonde.


	13. Destruction

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two abused boys share a bond they didn't ask for. Becoming close and questioning everything.
> 
> ——
> 
> Or: Since Billy isn't getting the redemption in the show, I am giving him one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys! I am finally back!   
> I am so sorry for keeping you waiting for so long but life is getting in the way constantly, haha.

_destruction;_

the action of causing so much damage to something that it no longer cannot be repaired.

——

The blonde just pulled up his car into the driveway of his home, looking over the house before he stopped the engine. He then turned his head a little to the side to look over at his soulmate who was patiently waiting in his seat, waiting for Billy to get out first.  
  
 _Of course._

Of course Jonathan would have known he would be a little hesitant about inviting him inside. The blonde had been at his soulmate's house multiple times but the brunette has never been over at Billy's house.  
  
The blonde had never in his life had a friend over at his place, he stayed over at people's places, or they hung out somewhere else, the beach, the mall, the parking lot, anywhere. But never at the blonde's house.  
  
And even though he knew no one was home, there was still a little weird feeling inside of him, letting someone see where he lived and how he lived. Letting someone see that he didn't have a perfect family or a perfect home.  
  
But this was Jonathan, and Jonathan knew. And even if he didn't, Billy knew that the photographer wouldn't care even if he didn't.  
  
The blonde pulled out the keys and unfastened his seatbelt, his hand on the handle of the car. His soulmate still didn't say a word and it was starting to make Billy worried and paranoid.  
  
"I have never taken anyone to my house." He then let out, his hand still hovering over the handle.

"I must be pretty damn special then." The other boy replied, a playfull grin placed on his face as he opened the car door on his side a little.  
  
"Gross." The blonde rolled his eyes as he laughed softly and got out of the car, soon followed by the other boy.  
  
The two of them approached the house with the blonde going in first, letting his soulmate enter the place he called home. Closing the door behind them, the blonde then made his way right to his room with the photographer right behind him.  
  
"Why am I invited to this dinner again?"  
  
"You are invited because mom likes you and wants to have a family dinner."  
  
The blonde tried to ignore the warmth that filled his body after hearing the word 'family' and just made some noise of agreement as he finally stepped into his own room.  
  
"Welcome." He then said sarcastically, throwing his hands around as he looked over his room. It was pretty clean so there was at least that.  
  
The boy then went to throw the shirt he was wearing over his head, throwing it onto the chair placed in the corner of his room. "What am I supposed to wear? A tie or something?" He then questioned, furrowing his brows a bit as he looked inside his closet, searching for something appropriate.  
  
"Like a shirt? Or a tie? It's just casual right?"  
  
"Why are you even worrying about this?" The other boy laughed as he sat down onto the blonde's bed.  
  
"Because Joyce invited me and she told me to wear something nice, so that obviously means I have to wear something nice, dumbass." The blonde let out frustratedly, making the photographer laugh softly as he watched the other boy struggle with choosing what to wear.  
  
"Honestly, anything is going to be just fine." The brunette said as he leaned onto the bed, making himself comfortable while looking around Billy's room.  
  
The blonde reached out to take one of his shirts out before putting it back into the closet and looking all over his clothes again, trying to decide if he should wear red or blue. He did know it didn't really matter but he wanted to look nice for Joyce.  
  
"Red or blue?" He said as he turned around to look at his soulmate with question playing in his eyes.  
  
"Green."  
  
"Fuck off." The blonde groaned in frustration as he grabbed one of the shirts and threw it right on top of Jonathan's head who laughed.  
  
Moments like this made Billy remember how comfortable he was with Jonathan and how good he felt around him. It made him remember how close they became for Billy to invite the other boy over, to his room, where no one else was ever invited.  
  
It was bringing a small, sappy smile onto the blonde's face as he watched the dimples on his soulmate's cheeks when the other boy laughed.  
  
 _Gross, Billy, gross._  
  
In this exact moment, with Jonathan laughing on Billy's bed and the other boy smiling like the biggest sap in the whole world, a figure walked through the hallway and stopped in front of Billy's room.  
  
"Billy."  
  
All the laughter disappeared from the blonde's face and he turned around to look at the man standing a few meters away from him. He did his best to hide his surprise and horried expression but it did show in his eyes and he knew for sure his father caught it, he wasn't sure about Jonathan though.  
  
"Who is this?" The older man said, his gaze shifting to the boy sitting on the bed who was shifting uncomfortably as he slowly stood up, wiping his hands into his trousers. "Hello, I am Jonathan."  
  
"This is my friend." Billy quickly added, pointing to the other boy before running his fingers through his hair, suddenly very aware of his shirtless state and the shirt Jonathan was holding in his hands.  
  
"Friend?"  
  
"Yes, friend. I have those." The blonde did his best to bite back any comments but he did make this one slip, knowing he would probably regret it in the future.  
  
"You have never brought anyone over." His father replied, the harshness showing in both his voice and his face.  
  
"We were just leaving anyway." He quickly said, eyeing Jonathan carefully who looked as if he wanted to say something but either didn't know what or he wasn't sure if he was allowed to.  
  
"Where are you going?" The older man questioned, his eyes narrowing a little as he looked between the two boys before fixing his gaze onto his son. "And why are you shirtless?" He then added.  
  
"My mom invited Billy over for dinner, he was just changing." The brunette quickly replied when he noticed the other boy was a little hesitant and obviously thinking about an answer.  
  
"Why are you speaking for my son?" The oldest male questioned harshly with a slight frown, his chest raising with the anger that was slowly building up inside him.  
  
"Don't talk to him like that!" The blonde barked out quickly, taking a step forward Jonathan, not even realizing that he did so. He knew he wanted to protect him, to stand up for him.  
  
What he didn't realize as he called out those words was the tone he used, the deep frown on his face, the hatred showing in his eyes and his father's eyes on him, finding the exposed words written on his body.  
  
And he just knew, he knew his father figured it out. Neil Hargrove wasn't a stupid man and he was definitely smart enough to realize that this boy must have been special if his son stood up for him. When he had never done it for himself.  
  
Yet here he was, standing up for Jonathan and trying to protect on an instant reflex.  
  
And once he saw how his father's face changed to realization and how the fire in his eyes lit up, the boy was taking another step in front of Jonathan but it was pointless because his father was already marching towards him, pushing him into his chest and making him fall onto the floor.  
  
"You fucking faggot!"  
  
The blonde hit the ground, trying to process what just happened. His father had found out about him and Jonathan, his father, who hated soulmates, who hated homosexual has found out that his only son has found his soulmate and it was a male.  
  
A male that was standing right there, not knowing what all was Neil capable of. Hell, Billy didn't even know it himself.  
  
He quickly got up from the ground, noticing how Jonathan moved towards him and caught him by the elbow, pulling him to him to keep him away from the man standing right in front of them, looking the angriest and scary Billy has ever seen him.  
  
Neil marched forward once again and the blonde managed to block his punch, using his own force to push against the older man, making him stumble back a bit. "How dare you!" His father spat into his face, using his other hand to slap his son across his cheek.  
  
That was when the brunette got in front of the blonde and pushed the older male away from him, a slight shock spread over the father's features before anger replaced it and he raised his hand with the meaning to hit the photographer but the blonde was quicker and threw the first punch at his own father after years of abuse.  
  
He had never dared to raise his hand back on his father but he just couldn't let him touch Jonathan. He wouldn't ever forgive himself if he let it happen.  
  
Before the blonde or the father could do anything else, the brunette was grabbing him by the arm and tugging him along as he ran towards the door, trying to get outside as fast as possible.  
  
Billy didn't really get to process what was happeing, all he was focusing on was holding onto Jonathan's hand, trying not to fall over something as his father's voice echoed through the whole house. He couldn't understand what he was saying but he could hear the loud steps and his father calling out something but his ears were ringing as he ran outside with the other boy, the oldest male right behind them.  
  
The photographer somehow managed to dug through Billy's pockets and find the car keys as he quickly pushed the blonde into the car, he himself getting into the driver's seat.  
  
The blonde wouldn't usually let him drive but his mind wasn't present in the moment to understand what was happening. His head was spinning, his heart was beating like crazy, his breaths were getting stuck in his throat as he looked over his shoulder to see his father standing on the stairs to the house as he watched them drive away.  
  
Billy could feel the hatred his father felt towards him from all this way and he looked away, finally processing what just happened.  
  
"I am dead." He then let out, shakily as he stared ahead on the road, trying to get a proper breath into his lungs. "I am so dead."  
  
"No. You are not." The photographer quickly assured the other boy, using one of his hands to hold the steerling wheel and he reached out with the other one, placing his hand onto Billy's arm. "You are safe with me, okay? I will protect you."  
  
The blonde tried to focus on the warmth coming from Jonathan's hand and the words that were repeating themselves in his head.  
  
 _I will protect you. You are safe with me._

——

  
The whole time Jonathan was driving, the blonde didn't pay attention to anything but his throbbing head and the hand that kept on touching his arm in assuring and soft movements. He had a feeling that the brunette is driving them to their house and he didn't mind, he didn't care at the moment.  
  
He had tried so hard to make sure his father doesn't find out about him meeting his soulmate, especially about his soulmate being a male living right in Hawkins.  
  
He would have taken everything and moved them to another city. And Billy realized he might still do that. The blonde wasn't sure what the expect the next time he would see his father. Would his stuff be packed and they would be ready to leave? Would he beat him up, trying to make Billy promise he wouldn't see the boy again? He wasn't sure and he didn't want to find out.  
  
The boy wondered how did this even happen, his father was supposed to work late, just like everyday, but he just had to come home early. The one time Billy brings Jonathan over and his father just had to find them.  
  
He then wondered how the hell he didn't hear the front door but he figured that he was too focused on the sound of Jonathan's laughter to pay attention to anything else.  
  
The car stopped and the blonde looked outside the window to see the very familiar house. The boy next to him wasn't moving yet and neither was he, he was almost looking away from both Jonathan and the house the boy lived in.  
  
"Billy?" A soft voice filled the car and the mentioned boy sucked in a breath as he tried to avoid the photographer's gaze. His fingers found the shirt that was placed on his lap for this whole time and he slowly put it on, buttoning the shirt up and only leaving the first three buttons unbuttoned.  
  
He then looked up into the mirror to check how his face looked, finding only a little redness on his cheek, nothing too bad. He then pinched his other cheek until it was as red as the other one so it could be mistaken for a blush or redness.  
  
"What are you doing?"  
  
"What?"   
  
"Don't do that." The other boy said, pulling the blonde's hand away from his cheek. "We have to tell my mom, don't try to hide it."  
  
"No." The blonde quickly let out, shaking his head slightly as he tried to ignore the look on his soulmates face, shutting his eyes for a second as he collected his thoughts and his breathing.  
  
"Look." He started, pointing to the house and to the cars standing in the front. "The Chief is here and I am not going to deal with this tonight. We are not going to tell him anything or your mom, okay?"  
  
"No, Billy! We have to tell both of them, this is not okay!" The other boy called out, looking furious and concerned at the same time.  
  
"We tell them and then what? Do we have any proof? No, we don't. It's our word against my father's. It's just going to complicate everything." The blonde sighed softly, straightening his shirt as his eyes flickered between the boy sitting next to him and the house.  
  
"You can't keep letting him do this to you. Please."   
  
The blonde got almost convinced after hearing the boy's pleadings and seeing the look on his face but he then shook his head a little. "It's going to get worse if I involve the police. Trust me on this."  
  
"But-"  
  
"No, listen to me." He interrupted the photographer before he could say something else. "I can't involve the police. They could send me away and I would leave Max and Susan with him, angrier than ever. The police is not going to do anything. I know you are friends with the Chief and everything but this is my choice, Jonathan."  
  
The other boy stayed silent for a while and Billy could feel the brown eyes all over his face, exploring every facial expression that he made.   
  
"I won't tell them anything but you have to promise me that you are going to tell me everything that happens from now on. And I can't promise you that I am not going to do anything about it."  
  
"What? You gonna beat my father up?" The blonde chuckled softly, looking over at his soulmate who finally looked a little less furious.  
  
"I am not that bad at fighting, you would be surprised."  
  
One of the smallest smiles made its way onto the blonde's face as he watched the photographer get out of the car and he followed him outside.  
  
He was still kind of processing everything that happened in the last hour. He shared something really intimate to him with Jonathan, inviting him into his room. He had finally stood up to his father after years. Jonathan had stood up for him in front of his father, not being afraid of him at all. And now he was threating to go and fight his father himself.  
  
He had Jonathan who was looking out for him, caring about him, protecting him. It was a nice feeling. That was why he pushed his thoughts back into his head and just focused on the brunette next to him.  
  
——  
  
And so the blonde followed the brunette to his house, looking over his shoulder as if he expected his father to be following him. But he wasn't and it calmed down Billy a little bit along with the fact that the Chief was inside the house and if something was about to happen, he would be protected.  
  
He stopped for a moment just as they were about to go in and it surprised him a little when he saw the other boy stop at the same time as well, he expected him to head straight inside but he looked over at Billy and waited until he was ready to go in.  
  
Small moments like this made the blonde choke up a little and like the brunette even more, which was becoming bigger and bigger problem.  
  
The boy then gave a little nod to Jonathan who then reached for the handle and opened the door, entering the house wih the blonde going right after him.  
  
"Oh, there you are! I was starting to get worried!" The woman called out immedietaly as they entered the house.  
  
A smile appeared on the blonde's smile the second he saw her and his eyes followed her and he could see the Chief sitting right next to her along with Will and his sister's soulmate, El. Or Jane as he learned.  
  
"Hey." The brunette said, a soft warm smile playing on his lips and Billy could just see the dimples appearing on his face. He tore his eyes off from his soulmate's face and looked over at the table.   
  
"Hello."  
  
Both of the kids and the Chief greeted the two boys as the two of them sat down to the table, Jonathan facing Will, Billy facing the girl and the two adults facing each other.  
  
Billy was glad to be sitting next to his soulmate because he could feel himself not feeling so confident and careless at the moment. The reality was getting to him once again and he was starting to be slightly afraid of what would happen once he finds his way back to the house he lives in.  
  
One of his hands started playing with the rings on the other just so he could keep himself busy. He blocked out the conversation that was happening. If someone was talking to him, he didn't know, he didn't listen. He was there but his mind was somewhere else.  
  
That was until he felt a warm hand on his own and he snapped his head up, looking down at his soulmate's hand placed on his own before looking up to meet his worried gaze.  
  
The boy then released his hands from the hold and put them on the table, grabbing the fork and knife placed in front of him, realizing that he has not touched his food at all. He then looked down at his plate before looking up and looking around the table.  
  
He noticed that the kids were talking to each other, Joyce was maintaining some sort of eye contact and silent conversation with Jonathan and then the blonde moved his eyes at the Chief just to notice that he was bluntly staring at him.  
  
Billy felt small under his gaze, he felt as if all his secrets were playing on his face and the older man just looked right through him, finding out every little single thing.  
  
The blonde shifted in his seat, quickly looking away but he didn't hold it for too long before he looked back at the Chief who still hasn't looked away from him. It was sending shivers down the boy's spine.   
  
"Everything alright?"  
  
Billy almost jumped up in his seat as soon as he heard the man's voice but he quickly managed to contain himself. "Yeah, of course." He quickly replied and played around with the food placed on his plate.  
  
It seemed as if the Chief decided to let it go or he just simply didn't have anything else to say.  
  
After that Billy tried to engage in the conversation more, managing to eat a bite or two, but he was still very distant, only focusing on his soulmate's touch when he touched his shoulder, patted his leg, brushed his fingers over the blonde's.  
  
But then after they finished dinner, Joyce got up, saying that she will clean up after she is back. That should have already alerted Billy that she is going outside for a smoke but he didn't think about that, he just stared at his plate and didn't look at the woman that was walking around the table.  
  
She then clapped her hand onto Billy's shoulder as she said "You going?" and the blonde just didn't expect it at all. That was why he got so alerted and jumped up, almost flying out from his chair, staying seated only because Jonathan caught onto him, holding him in place.  
  
He forgot all the words he ever learned as he felt the stare of all the people present in the room. He could almost feel himself trembling and he just avoided the gaze on him. He felt Jonathan's hand holding onto him, assuaring him but he didn't dare to look up.  
  
"Boys."  
  
The Chief's voice filled the room and Billy slightly flinched because it became clear that he just knew. The blonde was aware that he had assumptions before but by the tone of his voice, it became aware that he just knew now.  
  
The blonde got up from his seat, trying to escape his soulmate's grip but the brunette was holding onto him, letting a quiet 'No' slip through his lips.   
  
"What's going on?" The woman let out, sounding worried and confused.   
  
He could see the Chief approaching them and he could feel himself automatically backing away. "Billy." The man then let out and the blonde noticed it sounded more calmer and official than the voice he normally used. He was using his police officer voice.  
  
"Jonathan?" Joyce's voice echoed through the room again and Billy held onto him, just hoping that he wouldn't say anything as he promised. He could feel his heart beating super fast and he had never felt this way before.  
  
He was scared for them to find out. He was scared of what would happen. He was scared maybe once or twice in his life and he wasn't used to this feeling, he was panicking.  
  
"Darling, what's wrong?" The woman had dropped the confusion and was now full on worried. Her voice sounding like a calm whisper.  
  
The boy wished that it would at least happen with just the two of them. Him and Joyce. Not with the kids and the Chief in the room.   
  
"Son, why don't you tell us?" The older man choose to speak again and now that the blonde looked up, he could see both of the adults standing and the kids still sitting in their seats, not saying anything as if they let the 'adults talk'.  
  
"Billy, please." Now his soulmate was pleading and it was too much for the blonde. The Chief's intense stare, Joyce's worried look and just the presence of his soulmate was driving him insane.  
  
"No." The blonde managed to get out shakily before continuing. "Kids." He breathed out, not wanting to deal with this in front of the kids.  
  
And so the woman gestured towards the children, telling them to go to Will's room for a moment. The kids did as they were told without even a question, probably sensing that something was wrong.  
  
——  
  
Once the kids were in Will's room, the brunette made the blonde sit back down into his chair, still holding onto his hand. The man was leaning against the table and the woman was kneeling down next to Billy. Both waiting for him to explain what happened.  
  
The blonde has never felt more ashamed in his life, he hated being in situations like this. He didn't like to show emotions or what was worse, talking about them.  
  
"You do it." He then let out silently, directing it at Jonathan even though he wasn't looking at him but he knew the other boy would get the hint.  
  
"Billy's dad has been abusing him." The brunette said immediately, looking more at his mother than at the Chief because both of the soulmates knew the man had his assumptions. It felt like a slap to Billy, hearing those words out loud.  
  
The woman took in a sharp breath as her hand landed on Billy's knee in a comforting way, but before she could say something, the Chief spoke up.  
  
"Did something happen today?"  
  
The blonde just nodded, not wanting to explain what happened. He finally hit his dad back today and it wasn't going to be pretty once he gets back into that house, but he couldn't avoid him. It would be worse. For the two redheads.  
  
"Oh, sweetheat." The woman almost cried out and once the blonde looked down at her, he could see her eyes watering and he had to look away, looking down at his feet instead.  
  
He felt so small and useless at this very moment. He was making his problems someone else's, who as sure didn't need to hear about his fucked up life.  
  
"What are we going to do?" He heard his soulmate ask and he whipped his head around to look at him to see him staring at the Chief who was still exploring the blonde himself.  
  
"Nothing."  
  
"Billy."  
  
"No." He quickly shook his head, shifting in his seat. "Everything would get so much worse."  
  
"Not if he can't get to you. I can get you a restraining order." The man spoke slowly and calmly, making sure not to scare the blonde teenager away.  
  
"No." The blonde let out again, sounding more angrier than before, not really controlling his emotions at the moment. The only thing holding him back was Jonathan's warm touch that was calming him down, filling him with warmth and calmness even though his rage was slowly overcoming it. The silent whispers of 'It's okay, I am here' coming from Jonathan were messing with his mind as well.  
  
"Okay, honey, okay." Joyce quickly calmed him down, petting the blonde's leg quickly to maintain to keep him calm even though she herself looked as if she wanted to kill Neil Hargrove herself. "We are not going to do anything unless you want to but this is a serious situation."  
  
The woman was speaking quietly and calmly but Billy could see the anger and sadness playing in her eyes. He was aware that Jonathan's dad wasn't exactly the best either so all of this was hitting too close to home.  
  
"Why didn't you tell me?" She then spoke again and it was breaking the blonde's heart to how small and silent her voice sounded. He didn't want to cause her any worries or problems.  
  
"No reason to pull other people into my shit." He spat out quietly, getting defensive again only to feel Jonathan's hands on his shoulders, taming him down.  
  
It was almost pissing him off that his soulmate knew him so well and knew exactly how to calm him down, how not to do too much or too less. He exactly knew what to say or what to do and it was making the blonde go insane.  
  
The woman then seemed like she was about to say something else but the Chief raised his hand up for her to stay quiet, taking the matter into his own hands.  
  
"How long has this been going on?"  
  
"He has been like this ever since my mom died but he first got violent when I was twelve."  
  
Billy kind of surprised himself, the fact that he coopeared with a police officer was surprising him but he knew it was because he had Jonathan holding him down and Joyce doing the exact same.  
  
"Have you ever reported it to someone?"  
  
"No."  
  
"What is the worst thing that happened?"  
  
"Broken arm."  
  
Both of the Byers took a sharp breath next to him and he could feel the hands on his shoulders gripping onto him with more force.  
  
"And Max isn't experiencing any of this? Or your step-mother?"  
  
"No." The boy shook his head slightly, noticing the hint of worry in the man's voice when he asked those questions.  
  
The Chief seemed as if he didn't know what else to say, he looked as if he just got confirmed on what he thought was happening and now that the boy didn't want his help, there wasn't much to do.  
  
"Honey, you should stay with us." The woman then spoke again, looking just so sad and motherly, Billy wanted scratch his eyes out.  
  
He just wanted to run away from everyone. From his dad, from the Byers, from the Cheif, everyone.  
  
"I can't." The boy shook his head slightly before continuing. "I have to check on Max and Susan." He said, already deciding that he is not staying here. He needed to check on them, to see if something happened after he and Jonathan stormed out, he needed to make sure they are okay.  
  
He could see that the woman was about to argue with him but he shook his head again. "I need to make sure they are okay. I promise if something happens, I will be out the door and back here in a second, okay?"  
  
He didn't truly mean what he was saying, he probably couldn't control the situation if his father decided to beat him up for what happened, but he needed to see the two redheads and he knew the woman wouldn't let him go until she believed that he would be alright.  
  
And Billy was a good actor.  
  
——  
  
After he promised multiple times to both the Byers and the Chief that he would be back if something happened and that he would call them in the evening to assure them he is okay, the boy finally got out of the house.  
  
He didn't want to go back, but he needed to. If it weren't for the two redheads, he would have never step a foot into a same room as his father ever again, but this was not the case.  
  
The boy just hoped that he left them alone. He would feel like that is on him because he left and he left them there, even though the women weren't home during the time he left, his father would sure as hell be pissed for a long time.  
  
Through the whole ride back to the house he lived in, the blonde was almost praying that it would somehow be alright, that his father would somehow just let it go. But that wouldn't happen, that would be a miracle and Billy knew it.  
  
He has been called a faggot ever since he could remember and now his father's biggest fear came true. Billy could try to explain that he wasn't only attracted to boys. That he loved girls. That it was because Jonathan was his soulmate and everything was driving him towards him. But it would be pointless.  
  
When he parked the car in front of the house, his heart was beating so fast his chest could bust open. The boy kept his keys in his hand, ready to use them as a weapon against his father or have them in his hand incase he needed to run away.  
  
The blonde opened the door carefully, making sure he doesn't make much noise. He hoped Susan would be standing in the kitchen, Max would be sitting in the living room watching something, he   
hoped they would be there when he opened the door. But they weren't.  
  
Once he opened the door, all he could see was pretty much darkness. The only light that was filling the room was the light coming from his father's office. The boy sighed in relief before he noticed a figure sitting by the dining table.  
  
He very well recognized his father's figure and so he straightened up a little and turned the light on, his gaze landing on Neil.  
  
"Where are Max and Susan?" The boy shot his question immediately.  
  
His father narrowed his eyes a little bit, staring at his son and the blonde could see the hatred playing in his eyes. "They are outside, they haven't been home yet." He then surprisingly answered. The man kept surprising the boy all the time, the fact that he was just sitting there and not lashing out at the boy was sort of terrifying.  
  
Such a relief fell off the blonde's shoulders. The fact that the two of them weren't home meant that they didn't have to face Neil yet, meaning that nothing happened to them, meaning that if something was going to happen, it would happen to Billy right now, right here, and not to them.  
  
"Sit down." His father's harsh voice surprised the boy a little and he looked over at the older man, noticing the papers placed in front of him.   
  
Was he giving him up for adoptions or what? _Fuck, please.  
_  
The boy was still standing by the door for a few more seconds before he slowly walked towards the table, deciding that it was better to do as his father's says than to resist. Maybe things would turn out better for him.  
  
Once he was sitting down, the other man grabbed the papers into his hand and threw them towards the blonde on the other side of the table. "Sign it or I will sign it for you."  
  
Billy was a little confused by his father's words and his actions. He expected to get beaten up the seconds he enters the house. But once he looked down at the papers, it all made sense.  
  
'Application for the U.S. forces.'  
  
"You want to send me to the army?" The boy let out surprisedly but once he proccesed what was happening, he wasn't actually that surprised.  
  
"They will set you straight."  
  
He was looking down at the papers and saw his father handing him a pen over the table. It kind of made sense for his father to want to send him away. The boy opened his mouth just to close it again, not quite knowing what to say. He should have seen something like this coming but he was still shaken a little when it happened.  
  
"I called Lieutenant Matthews and he is ready to set it up."  
  
The blonde knew who his father was talking about, Neil had contacts everywhere, especially in the army. He had been there himself so the fact that he wanted him to go as well wasn't that surprising to Billy. But it was more for revenge, for keeping him away from his soulmate rather than wanting his son to follow his path.  
  
He was still looking down at the papers and he was slowly realizing that he doesn't have any choice. Nobody would care that his father would force his own signature on the papers, he had contacts and Billy would be gone in a matter of days. 

He was so angry at himself for not seeing this coming and for not being prepared, he didn't know what to do.  
  
The boy reached for the pen, just holding it for the moment. His thoughts were still all over the place. He didn't want to leave Max and Susan here with his father. He didn't want to leave his step-sister now that she was finally opening up to him again.  
  
And Jonathan. He couldn't leave Jonathan.

_Would his father start beating his anger on the females if he was gone? What would happen to them? What would happen to Jonathan? Would his father try to find him and threaten him?_  
  
Billy was still staring at the papers in front of him, the pen in his hand when his father slammed his hand onto the table, making the boy blink as he got snapped out from his thoughts. As if the older man knew exactly what he was thinking about.  
  
"No son of mine will be a faggot." The man gritted through his teeth and the blonde could sense the treath behind those words. Either he would go willingly or he would be forced to go and Jonathan might take the damage.  
  
The blonde clicked the pen, his eyes falling down onto the empty spot, waiting for his signature. He sighed quietly, his hand hovering over the spot. "Give me this weekend so I can spend it with Max." He let out silently, knowing that his father might allow him to stay a little longer if he brings up his step-sister.  
  
Neil stayed quiet for a little while, carefully watching his son in front of him before he spoke again. "You are leaving on Monday."  
  
The boy then nodded a little, swallowing the gulp that formed in his neck. He was thinking about the two redheads and the whole Byers family when he signed the papers in front of him.

 


	14. Weakness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two abused boys share a bond they didn't ask for. Becoming close and questioning everything.
> 
> ——
> 
> Or: Since Billy isn't getting the redemption in the show, I am giving him one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Surprise, bitch! I bet you thought you'd seen the last of me.
> 
> No, haha. I am sorry, guys, that I have been gone for such a long time and I don't actually have an excuse. Life just happened and writer's block happened, but hey! I am back.  
> I will try to update as soon as I can but I am studying college and I don't have that much time, but I will do my best! I promise!
> 
> Anyway, thank you for still liking and commenting on my work. <3 Enjoy this chapter.

_weakness_ ;  
  
the state or condition of being weak.  
  
——  
  
Once Neil let Billy leave the room, the blonde waited in his room for the day to end. He had planned what he is going to do tomorrow, what he is going to tell Max, how he is going to ask the Byers brother to join them for the trip he had planned, how he is going to make sure his father doesn't know about it.  
  
He wanted to take all, Max, Will and Jonathan to a little trip this weekend before he left on Monday. He already had it planned a bit in his head but he would have to improvise.  
  
The only thing he didn't have planned was how the hell he is going to tell them he is joining the army. He could already imagine the reactions he would get from them, especially from Jonathan.  
  
Honestly he was a little afraid about telling the other boy and both of the kids, knowing himself, he was sure he would delay it to the last minute, not wanting to ruin the mood for the whole trip.  
  
He knew there was no way he could avoid the army once he signed those papers, his father would force him to go anyway. But he really didn't want to go. He wanted to stay here with his soulmate and sister.  
  
The boy spent the whole night trying to think how he could possibly avoid joining the army but he figured no possible way. With his father having connections there, the older man would probably do check ins on his son.  
  
Once the morning came, the blonde was almost prepared to face the closests to him. He was decided that he is not going to tell them straight away, he wanted to enjoy this weekend with them, without them worrying about him.  
  
He was glad his father was already at work when he left his room that morning, finding only Susan standing in the kitchen with Max sitting on the counter, eating a sandwich.  
  
"Morning." He had said, flashing a small smile both their ways, carefully watching Susan's reaction to see if she knew already or not. From the way she smiled back, it seemed that she had no clue about what happened last night.  
  
_Maybe that's for the better._  
  
The young girl looked up from the sandwich she was eating and gave him a nod, not saying aanything since she had her mouth filled up with food.  
  
Billy then himself went to grab the bread to make himself something as well but he was surprised when Susan handed him a plate with a sandwich onto  it, apparently waiting there for him.  
  
"Thanks." He choked out, taking it with a small grin. _Maybe she knows?_ He was watching her as he leaned against the counter next to Max, taking a bite of his sandwich.  
  
"I hope you don't have any plans for the weekend." He then said, looking down at his step-sister, chewing onto his sandwich as he watched her look up at him with a question in her eyes. "Why?"  
  
"I am taking you to South Carolina." He continued casually as if this was completely normal for him, as if they did this every weekend.  
  
"I repeat, why?" The girl asked, looking confused but there was a small excitement playing in her eyes.  
  
"Why not?" The boy shrugged slightly, slowly finishing his sandwich, wipping his hands into the jeans he was wearing. "You okay with that? Neil is." He then spoke again, directing his words at Susan this time.  
  
"Of course." She spoke, looking a bit confused and surprised herself. _Maybe she doesn't know?  
_  
"We are leaving Friday after school so you better be ready or I am leaving you here." The blonde then said, poking the redhead's shoulder before he made his way to the door, signalising for her to follow so they wouldn't be late for school.  
  
——  
  
Once the two of them got to school and Billy got out the car, he looked around and realized this is one of his last days in here. He didn't know what would happen during his time in the army. He could never come back, he could get send off somewhere where no one could find him. He had no idea.  
  
And that was scaring him. Inside, he was terrified, but on the outside, it was just another day for him.  
  
He waited until his classes were over to go find and tell Jonathan, he didn’t want to tell him during class or during lunch because there was always someone around him. He had wanted to catch him alone, preferably in the parking lot so he could speak to him privately.  
  
The boy waited next to his car, looking around the parking lot to see if he could catch a glimpse of his soulmate. After a few minutes, the brunette really came barging out of the school with Nancy and Steve few feet behind him, deep in conversation.  
  
It was as if Jonathan could feel that the blonde was there waiting and looking for him because he looked up and met the blonde’s eyes. The boy then nodded in his direction, telling him to come over to him. He then watched the brunette say something to the other two teenagers who nodded at him, Nancy giving him a small kiss. The brunette then made his way over to the blonde standing by his car.  
  
"Hey."  
  
"Hey, get in." The blonde replied, petting the hood of his car as he opened the door to the driver’s seat and got into the car, with Jonathan soon following him.  
  
"Where are we going?"  
  
"Well, I saw that your car wasn’t here, meaning you had to drive with someone else today. So I decided to give you a lift home." Billy simply replied, as if it was obvious.  
  
"Yeah, Steve drove me. Both me and Nancy. My mom’s car broke down so she took mine. Hopper is going to come over later to take a look at it."  
  
"Oh, I am sure he will." The blonde chuckled a bit, chuckling once more when he felt the other boy punch his shoulder. "Anyway, I didn’t really notice you needed a ride until ten minutes ago but I needed to talk to you in private."  
  
"Did something happen?" The brunette asked quickly, sounding concerned.  
  
"No, everything is fine actually." Billy was an amazing actor and most of the times, no one could tell when he was lying. His mother probably would but she wasn’t here.  
  
"I have planned a little vacation. To South Carolina. Just you, me, Max and Will. What do you think?" He then asked, looking at the other boy from the corner of his eye, feeling a little nervous because he had planned everything and what if Jonathan said no? He wanted to enjoy his last weekend with them but he didn’t prepare what he would do if the other boy didn’t agree.  
  
The other boy blinked a few times, clearly being a little confused. "Where is this coming from?" He asked before continuing. "I mean, I would love to go but it’s so unexpected."  
  
"Well, Max already agreed and she is pretty excited if I can say so myself." The blonde said, ignoring the brunette’s question. "It’s settled then. I don’t think Joyce will be against it, do you?"  
  
"No, no, I don’t think so. I think she will glad that we get out of the house and go somewhere for once."  
  
"Great. We are leaving Friday after school. Be ready, pretty boy." He annouced just as he pulled up to the Byers house.

——  
  
On Friday morning, the boy was pacing around his bedroom, stuffing things and clothes he needed for the trip into his backpack.  
  
_Wallet, keys, clothes, sunglasses. That's everything, right?  
_  
He realized he really didn't need much. What else could he need for a simple weekend trip? Except it wasn't a simple weekend trip. Not for him anyway, he needed to let his soulmate and his step-sister know that he is going to be gone by Monday.  
  
The boy checked his backpack one more time before throwing it onto his back and walking out of the room, closing the door behind him. He then walked over to his sister's room, knocking onto her door. "You ready?"  
  
He then leaned against the wall next to her door, waiting for the girl to exit as he heard shuffling around, meaning that the girl was clearly still packing. Hopefully finishing.  
  
Billy only had to wait a couple of minutes before the girl was leaving her room and he turned his head to the side, facing her. "You got everything?"  
  
"I guess." She replied as she shrugged.  
  
"Okay, let's go." The boy nodded slightly and motioned for her to follow him as he started walking towards the front door.  
  
"See you, Susan." He then acknowledged his step-mother as he gave her a small smile. "We will bring you something!" The little redhead then said, smiling at her own mother.  
  
"A postcard." The boy said quietly, feeling a smack on his shoulder from the girl standing beside him. "No, something nice!" Max quickly said, reasurring her mother who gave both of them a warm smile.  
  
"Enjoy your trip." She then said and Billy eyed her carefully, still thinking if she knows or doesn't about the longer trip he is going to be taking on Monday. _Doesn't seem like it.  
_  
"Let's go." He said once again to his sister as he continued to the front door.  
  
As soon as they got into the car, Billy started the engine and started driving to the Byers house, he didn't want to be late since he and Jonathan agreed the blonde would be picking them up at nine.  
  
When he was driving, he looked over at the redhead sitting next to him and he could already see that she was starting to get excited about this little trip of theirs. He was glad.  
  
It only took him a few minutes to get to his soulmate's house and he could see the two brothers standing out on the porch, waiting for them. _Bless_.  
  
"Someone is eager." He said once he stopped the car in front of the house and stepped outside, giving them a slight smirk.  
  
"Will has been awake since six, he is way too excited for this."  
  
"As he should be." The blonde said as he walked up to them, ruffling the small boy's hair who gave him a wide smile. "Finally, you are here!" He then proceeded to yell out of excitement.  
  
"Well, I am on time, ain't I?"  
  
"Two minutes late, actually." The brunette said as he grinned at his soulmate. "Oh, sod off." The blonde then shook his head slightly, nudging his soulmate into his side.  
  
"Are you two ready to go?"  
  
"Yes, Sir."  
  
Billy cringed at the word that left the little boy's mouth but he managed to hide it and throw back on his usual stupid grin.  
  
——  
  
Billy and Jonathan agreed to switch while driving but Billy really didn't plan to do that, he just wanted for everyone to enjoy themselves, that was why he let the kids pick up what tape they wanted to listen to from Jonathan's collection.  
  
That was why he ended up listening to some bullshit he didn't even recognize but he let it slide for their's sake. That was also why he didn't say anything when both of the kids opened the windows and yelled outside, singing the lyrics he didn't know. That was also why he let Jonathan give him directions from the map he had in his lap even though Billy pretty much knew exactly where he was going.  
  
He also didn't say anything when Jonathan pulled out his camera and started snapping pictures, he even actually smiled for one.  
  
And that was also why he was stopping by one of the first gas stations he saw and annouced that they can get whatever they want.  
  
They all got out of the car and entered the gas station. Billy pulled up his sunglasses he was wearing, making them sit on his head, tangeled in his hair. "Morning." He nodded slightly to the cashier behind the counter. She looked up a bit but didn't seem so bothered.  
  
"Okay, you two. You can both pick up 3..or 5, okay, 5 things. But not more. And nothing stupid." He then said to the two of them before handing each a twenty dollar bill.  
  
They both ran off instantly, looking around and searching for candies to buy, mumbling to each other as they hurried around the store.  
  
Billy then himself made his way down the store, grabbing two chocolate bars and turning back to go to the cashier. "Two packs of Camel's, please." He then said as he looked over the counter and picked up one of the lollipops that was in the stand next to the counter.  
  
He was soon joined by Jonathan who got a pack of chips and some drinks in his hands. The blonde motioned for him to put the things on the counter and just a few seconds later the two kids were standing behind them.  
  
The blonde paid for both, Jonathan's and his stuff before he stepped away to let the kids pay for the stuff they picked up. He was glad to see that they didn't spend over their limit.  
  
Both of the older boys then made their way outside, back to the car to wait for their siblings. They didn't have to wait for long because the two younger kids soon joined them. "I got you something!" His sister annouced as she pulled out a pack of candy cigarettes and gave it to her older brother who rolled his eyes at her.  
  
"Better than the crap you are putting into your body." The girl replied as she stuck her tongue out at him. He took the candy cigarettes anyway, shaking his head slightly as some form of a small smile found its way onto his face.  
  
After all of them got back into the car, Billy unwrapped the lollipop he had bought and popped it into his mouth with a loud pop. Jonathan whipped his head around to look at the boy sitting in the driver seat who didn't seem to notice as he swirled the lollipop in his mouth.  
  
A few seconds passed and the blonde finally noticed that the other boy was staring at him. He took the lollipop out of his mouth and looked over at Jonathan. "What?" He asked before putting the lollipop back into his mouth, sucking it in as he raised his eyebrow at the boy next to him.  
  
"Nothing." The other boy was quick to reply as he immediately looked away and out of the window.  
  
——  
  
The rest of the ride went pretty easily with both of the kids falling asleep right after stuffing their faces with candy. Jonathan stayed awake for a while longer, telling Billy to ask him to switch if he needed to and the blonde just nodded slightly but didn't intend on doing that.  
  
Soon after that the photographer was out as well and Billy was left alone but he didn't mind. He had the radio playing quietly, switching the tapes ever now and then. It was a ten hour ride after all. He was really glad that Jonathan got a few energy drinks because he really needed them to make sure he didn't fall asleep.  
  
He stopped a couple of times by the road, he needed to stretch his legs and smoke his cigarette in peace. He also had to take a piss and one time when he stopped, Will woke up as well and went along with him, but he had soon fallen asleep as well.  
  
Billy smoked way too many cigarettes for his own liking during the ride and he also ate everything he had picked up, also snatching the chips that Jonathan had bought. He was sure he wouldn't mind.  
  
The boy was pretty surprised when he didn't fall asleep behind the wheel, he thought he would need to make more stops along the way but he was glad he pulled through and didn't need to make the ride longer than it needed to be.  
  
After ten hours of driving, the boy was finally pulling up into the city he had found while looking through maps. This town was the closest to the beach and he was positive there would be hotels all around the town because of the closeness to the sea.  
  
"Yo, sleepy heads. Wake up!" He then called out to the others in the car, nudging Jonathan into his side and making the other boy jerk awake. "What?" The brunette said sleepily, blinking a few times as he adjusted his eyes to the sun that was still shining. Not for a long time now.  
  
Max and Will started shuffling in the backseat and Billy looked over his shoulder. "Morning." He chuckled softly after he saw the nest of hair that happened on his sister's head. "We are here." The blonde annouced as he kept on driving, looking around for a place to sleep.  
  
He immediately felt how much excited all of them got and he had to hide his smile, he didn't need all of them pointing out his excitement.  
  
"How are you feeling?" The brunette then interrupted his look for a place to stay. "Hm? What do you mean?"  
  
"You didn't wake me up to switch for driving."  
  
"Clearly you underestimate me." The blonde replied, forming a smirk on his face.  
  
"Are we here?!" The two kids then yelled out almost at the same time, looking out of the windows.  
  
"Yes, help me look for a place to stay." Billy said as he kept on searching the streets.  
  
"What about there?" The photographer asked as he pointed to a building on the left side of the road with big 'bed  & breakfast' sign on it. It didn't look too cheap or too expensive, _this could work_.  
  
"Okay, let's check it out."  
  
——  
  
Billy parked the car in the hotel's parking lot and stepped out with everyone else following him, they all went inside and the blonde checked out the prices for the rooms. After debating with Jonathan, the two of them decided to get just one room, figuring that they would survive two nights sleeping all together.  
  
The blonde didn't really protest because this would be one of his last moments with all of them. They got a twin room with the intention of each sibling sleeping in the bed with their other sibling. Even though Billy said he didn't mind sleeping on the floor.  
  
The four of them then walked up to their room, throwing their stuff onto the beds and into the closet. Billy told them to freshen up so they can go to the beach with the sun still out and they did exactly that.  
  
Max and Will were practically running around in excitement in front of them as the two boys followed behind them. The blonde let them lead, he figured getting to the beach wouldn't be so hard with all the signs around here.  
  
It didn't take long for them to reach the beach and Billy didn't even get to say something before the kids ran into the water, taking off their shoes midrunning.  
  
"Hey, be careful!" Jonathan managed to shout before they reached the water and started splashing the water around with their feet.  
  
"You joining?"  
  
"No, I think I will stay here." The photographer replied with his camera ready in his hands, already snapping pictures. The taller boy just nodded slightly before sinking down to the sand, sitting down in a comfortable position as he watched the two kids run around.  
  
He let the sun roam his face and he closed his eyes for a second, just enjoying the sun on his face, the sounds of the sea hitting the shore and the warm sand curling around his fingers.  
  
The sound of camera too close to his face distrubed his moment of peace and he could hear Jonathan sitting down next to him without even opening his eyes.  
  
"There is something wrong with your face."  
  
"What?" The blonde asked as he peaked his eyes open, looking at the boy next to him.  
  
"You are smiling, I didn't know you could do such thing." Jonathan replied, already chuckling as he said so, avoiding the hand that was aiming for his head.  
  
"Fuck off." He shook his head as he chuckled as well.  
  
The two of them just sat there for a few minutes, watching the kids jump around in the water in front of them. Billy was just about to stand up and actually join the kids when he felt Jonathan's head lean onto his shoulder and he sucked in a sharp breath, feeling surprised and incredibly warm all of sudden because of their bond.  
  
"What are you doing?"  
  
"Just let it happen."  
  
And so he did, he stayed quiet and let Jonathan lean onto his shoulder as they continued to sit on the beach, watching the two kids jump around.  
  
——  
  
When the boy woke up the next day, he squinted his eyes open as he proceeded to stretch his hands but he quickly pulled them back to his body when he hit a warm body next to him. He turned around to his side, facing Jonathan who was still fast asleep.  
  
_Huh?_ He pulled up on his elbows, looking over to the other bed where he found his sister and the other boy asleep with comic books all around them. He then remembered that the two of them fell asleep while reading the comics Will had brought on the trip.  
  
He remembered that they let them sleep and just took the other bed. The boy turned around onto his back and closed his eyes again, taking a few deep breaths. He couldn't figure out when the two of them shared a bed the last time.  
  
Billy then just laid there for a few minutes before he could feel small movements right next to him. He opened his eyes again and looked over at Jonathan who was slowly waking up, adjusting his eyes to the sunshine that was peaking through the window.  
  
"Hi." The brunette rasped sleepily and the blonde gave him one of his smallest smiles. He liked half asleep Jonathan. Ruffled hair, small eyes, red cheeks and a raspy voice.  
  
"Morning, sunshine." He whispered, not wanting to wake up the two kids sleeping on the other bed. He then turned to his side just as did Jonathan, facing each other.  
  
Jonathan mumbled something before rubbing his eyes and yawning a little. "How did you sleep?" The boy whispered back as he looked at the boy next to him.  
  
"Alright." The blonde mumbled as he caught the other boy's eye, noticing that he still looked a little sleepy. _And cute._  
  
The brunette then made something that looked like a small nod but the two boys remained silent. Billy thought that he could fall asleep again just feeling the warmth of his soulmate, listening to nothing but silence, blue melting to brown as their eyes didn't turn away from each other.  
  
That was until all of sudden Jonathan loudly sneezed and since the blonde didn't expect it at all, he jumped away quickly and almost fell down from the bed if it wasn't for the other boy to catch him and pull him back up.  
  
The noises of Jonathan sneezing and Billy almost falling off the bed woke up the two kids and they all could finally properly wake up and go for a breakfast.  
  
——  
  
One of the things that Billy was excited about, going into this roadtrip, was definitely surfing. The boy loved surfing even though he never talked about it. When he wasn't getting in trouble with his friends back in California, they used to go surfing quite a lot.  
  
He loved the feeling of being free in the sea, not having to worry about anything, just feeling the surfboard and the water all around him. He also knew that it was dangerous a little bit, he himself even witnessed some injuries. But maybe that was another thing that he really liked about it, not knowing what is going to happen.  
  
He didn't even really need to convice Jonathan that much because the brunette seemed like he didn't mind anything, he was letting Billy decide what to do, probably because this whole trip was his idea.  
  
And so that was how they all ended up going to the beach, heading for the shop where they could borrow some surfboards. Billy had asked everyone if they wanted him to teach them how to surf and both of the kids declined, saying that they want to enjoy just being at the beach.  
  
But Jonathan said that he would like to learn, saying he wasn't sure if he would get that chance again. That statement made Billy think about the little time he got with his soulmate before he would have to leave, not knowing for sure if he would be back.  
  
Billy guided the brunette to the shop, letting him pick a surfboard that he liked, choosing one for himself as well. He wasn't surprised that Jonathan picked a blue one. The blonde picked a simple white one, he didn't really care. He just wanted to feel free at the sea again.  
  
"Do you want to get a wetsuit as well?" The blonde had then asked.  
  
"What is that?"  
  
"It keeps you warm even if the water is cold."  
  
"Well, do I need it?"  
  
"I guess not. But one never knows with you over carefulness."  
  
"Making sure you don't hurt yourself in the most stupid ways is not over carefulness."  
  
"Whatever, man." Billy shook his head a bit, ignoring the eye-roll he got from Jonathan as he went to pay for the surfboards they were borrowing along with some surfboard wax and leashes for their boards.  
  
Billy then put their surfboards in the sand in front of him as he started to apply a layer of wax on the surface, letting Jonathan go around snapping pictures for a while.  
  
The kids then annouced that they are going to build a sand castle and so the two teenagers decided to leave them to it, keeping their things with Max and Will. The brunette kept his camera with the two kids as well as their shoes and shirts.  
  
After that, the blonde had to show Jonathan what he had to do. The brunette said before that he is going to try his best but Billy knew that he was doing this just to try something he had never tried before and probably try to make Billy impressed. He didn't mind though, at least he wasn't alone.  
  
He then instructed Jonathan through the whole process on the ground. Telling him how to attach the leash, how to lie down and how to paddle in the water. He showed him the right way to get up so he wouldn't fall down, telling him that it's easier to get up to his kness first and then jump up one foot at a time. Showing him how to stand on the board properly was the last thing he needed to show him. After some time and answered questions, the brunette annouced that he ready to give it a try.  
  
The two of them got into water and Billy instantly felt the rush of memories hitting him. He pushed every memory far back into his head and decided to focus on the present.  
  
He was sitting on his surfboard, watching Jonathan trying to lay down without falling off the board. "Paddle around a little so you get used to it." The boy recommended, doing the same thing himself.  
  
The boy then looked around for the right spot, watching the waves come up to the shore, trying to decide where it would be the best to catch the wave.  
  
"Hey, paddle over here." He called out to Jonathan who was still paddling around, now heading for Billy's direction. "You ready for your first attempt? The waves are pretty small so it should be alright."  
  
The boy said as he sat up on the board, watching the waves in front of him.  
  
"Just watch me first."  
  
Once he saw the wave approaching, the blonde starting paddling, trying to catch the wave. When he was close enough, he got up and rode along with the wave, keeping himself in the position he had showed Jonathan earlier, letting the wave carry him to the shore.  
  
He was surprised how natural it felt, doing this after such a long time but it was as if he was at the beach just yesterday. He let himself just feel the sea, letting his hand go through the wave as he did a turn on his board before jumping away from his board once he felt the wave dying down.  
  
The boy then let the water carry him to the shore, paddling off to the side where Jonathan was still watching him.  
  
"Show off."  
  
"It's a talent." The blonde said, surprising himself at how cheerful his voice sounded. Being in the sea again was making him happier than he thought. "You wanna try?" He asked, trying to maintain his normal voice this time.  
  
"Yeah, okay, but I hope you don't expect me to get it on the first try."  
  
It took a few tries for Jonathan to get it but he did in the end after a lot of laughter coming from Billy along with some tips, but he got it after all, earning a small clap from the blonde.  
  
"Good job." He then offered once Jonathan managed to paddle back to his soulmate, wearing one of the biggest smiles Billy had ever seen him wear. "I did it!" The blonde loved seeing his soulmate so excited for something. The fact that he was leaving in two days was hitting him again and seeing the brunette's smile was becoming painfull for the blonde.  
  
He pushed all of those feelings away and just focused on being with his soulmate for the time being, surfing for about an hour with the brunette. Jonathan didn't ride as many waves as the blonde did, taking a few breaks and just watching Billy. And the boy was totally okay with that, just enjoying feeling the sea washing over him.  
  
——  
  
The four of them spent the entire day on the beach with the two older boys surfing and the two younger kids building their sand castle. They then all went for a swim and Billy actually ended up taking a nap on the beach, waking up to Jonathan scolding him to put some sunscreen on.  
  
They then went to get some food, including pizza, ice-cream, hot dogs and fries. They would be going home tomorrow and Billy wanted all of them to enjoy the day to the fullest. That was why he let the kids pick postcards in the souvenier shop, Jonathan even getting a shirt for Will that he liked. Max didn't exactly like anything but she did want to get Susan something along with the postcard. She picked up a mug and so the blonde got it for her.  
  
By the time they got back to their hotel room, it was pretty late at night since they decided to explore the city, stopping all the time because Jonathan wanted to take pictures. He took pictures of each of them, of the kids together, of Max and Billy. The blonde then took pictures of the Byers siblings and they ended up asking some stranger that was passing by if they could take a picture of all four of them.  
  
Billy made a reminder to himself that he needed to ask Jonathan for that picture before he left.  
  
The redhead and the younger Byers just cleaned up and they were asleep almost immediately. They said that they are going to read over the comics that Will has brought but they just ended up sleeping.  
  
The blonde laughed at how fast the two of them fell asleep, shaking his head as he took a puff of his cigarette that he was smoking by the window. He then looked over at Jonathan who was sitting on the bed, probably resting since his eyes were closed but he didn't look like he was sleeping.  
  
"Get up." He called out quietly, throwing his cigarette out of the window once he was done with it, stretching out as he stood up straight.  
  
"Why?" The other boy asked, peaking his eyes open at the other boy.  
  
"I wanna take you somewhere."  
  
"What? Where? We just spent the whole day outside, Billy." The brunette said even though he sat up at the bed and looked up at Billy.  
  
"If I tell you now, it's not gonna be a surprise, is it?" The blonde questioned as he grabbed his jacket, throwing it over his shoulder. "Come on."  
  
The brunette looked after him for a few seconds but he then of course followed him just as Billy knew he would.  
  
Jonathan quickly caught onto him, walking right beside him. "How do you even know where to go? I thought you said you have never been here."  
  
"I haven't."  
  
"Are we just going somewhere blindly?"  
  
"No."  
  
"I hate when you act mysterious, stop it." The brunette groaned out frustratedly, punching the blonde's shoulder, making the other boy laugh outloud.  
  
"Excuse you. I am being nice to you and you are being mean."  
  
He didn't miss the judging look Jonathan gave him and he surely didn't miss the frustrated sigh and an eye-roll. "Just be patient."  
  
The brunette gave him another dramatic sigh but remained patient as the two of them walked. Jonathan soon noticed that Billy looked like he had no idea where he is going as he was just looking around and choosing random turns and paths. "You have no idea where we are going, do you?"  
  
"Shh, we are almost there. I think."  
  
"Billy! What if we don't find a way back?"  
  
"Shhh." The blonde whispered, placing a hand over Jonathan's mouth before quickly pulling it away when the brunette tried to bite him. "Rude."  
  
The photographer let him take a few more turns before he decided to make some objections but he was soon stopped by Billy's voice. "We are here. I think."  
  
Jonathan got to finally look to where they were going and he frowned slightly before looking at Billy. "What is this? Wait, where are you going now?" He said, feeling more confused by every passing second as he watched his soulmate check the outside of the building, clearly looking for something.  
  
"Well, it's clearly locked. We gotta find another way in."  
  
"Wait, what? Are we breaking in now?! Billy!" The photographer groaned outloud, his frustration showing all over his face.  
  
"Come on, live a little." The blonde gave him a smile full of mischief as he finally found the ladder he was looking for. He didn't understand why people still put ladders on the sides of their buildings.  
  
"Billy!" The brunette yelled out as he watched the blonde climb up the ladder. "For fuck's sake." He muttered under his breath before following his soulmate up the ladder.  
  
The blonde didn't even pretend to hide his smile after noticing that his soulmate did follow him up the ladder. The boy then finally climbed up to the roof, turning around to give Jonathan a hand.  
  
"Follow me, mister." He then said, pulling Jonathan up onto the roof with him. He was pretty positive that the rooftop door would be unlocked, people never lock them.  
  
He walked over to the door and tried to open to door and to his luck, it was open.  
  
Billy gave the other boy a wink as he disappeared into the door with Jonathan quickly following him, muttering words under his breath that the blonde couldn't make up and he didn't even want to. He just started to walk down the stairs with his soulmate behind him.  
  
"Billy, where are we? How do you even know about this place?"  
  
"I heard some guys talking about it at the beach."  
  
"And you just thought that it would be a good idea to come here? Just because you heard someone talking about it." Jonathan asked, the sarcasm practically dripping from his voice.  
  
"Why don't you trust me a little?"  
  
"I do. What I don't trust is empty buildings that I know nothing about."  
  
"Fair enough." The bonde chuckled as they finally reached the end of the stairs, reavealing a pool right in front of them. There was almost no light, just the moonlight that was coming in through the windows.  
  
A small smile speard across Billy's face as soon as he saw the pool in front of him, proving to him that what he overhead was correct.  
  
"Be amazed." He then said as he turned around to look at Jonathan who was curiously looking around.  
  
"Aren't we gonna get caught?"  
  
"Does it look like someone is watching this place?"  
  
The brunette then looked around, trying to listen if someone was in the building with them but it seemed like no one was here. Just them.  
  
"If I end up in jail, you are going to have to explain it to my mom."  
  
"Alright." The blonde agreed as he chuckled softly, already taking off his shoes and throwing his jacket on the ground next to his shoes. He then looked over at his soulmate who was still just standing there, looking around. "Are you just gonna keep standing there?"  
  
The brunette gave him a look before he started to take off his shoes as well. Billy was already pulling his shirt over his head. He had tried the water with his foot as he waited for Jonathan to get ready for the pool.  
  
"You ready, pretty boy?" He then asked, looking up at the other boy. "Are you keeping your shirt on?" The boy asked, raising an eyebrow at his soulmate.  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Okay?"  
  
"Or no?" The brunette ran his hand through his hair and Billy could both see and feel that he was a little uncomfortable.  
  
"Just keep it on, it doesn't matter." He quickly said, trying to get rid of any uncomfortableness that Jonathan might be feeling.  
  
"Come try the water."  
  
The brunette did indeed come a little closer, wanting to test out the water but the blonde had different plans and instead pushed the photographer straight into the water before jumping right after him.  
  
When the blonde emerged up to the surface, he wore a wide smile, his eyes showing pure happiness as he floated around he pool. It looked like Jonathan is going to say something but after he saw his soulmate's smile, he replaced his frown with a smile of his own.  
  
The two of them just floated around in the water, paddling around with Billy poking the other boy and the photographer splashing him in response.  
  
Once again, it was just the two of them, sharing a moment filled with freedom, happiness and assurance.  
  
Billy swam under the water for a few minutes before he made his way over to Jonathan who was leaning against the edge of the pool. He could see him under the water.  
  
"You like it here?" He asked once he pulled himself against the edge of the pool right next to his soulmate.  
  
"I do." The brunette replied with a small smile, slowly kicking his legs in the water.  
  
"Good." Billy had whispered quietly, hiding his pleased grin. The boy then properly looked at the boy next to him.  
  
The photograper was completely relaxed with his eyes closed, just listening to the sound of water echoing all around them. His legs were doing the smallest movements under the water same as his fingers that were almost drawing circles in the water. His shirt was completely soaked and pinned against his body, revealing everything that was hiding underneath. And he wore one of the smallest smiles, those that you don't even know you have until someone else tells you.  
  
Billy was just blanky staring at his soulmate, taking advantage of the fact that Jonathan had his eyes closed. He realized how close the two of them were, he could just reach out for the other boy. He was right there.  
  
He moved just the slightest and he thought about it, he thought about just reaching out, trapping the other boy in his arms and just locking his lips with him.  
  
But he collected himself before he could do that. He remembered that they were friends, that Jonathan had a girlfriend at home waiting for him, that their siblings were alone sleeping in a hotel room, that he was leaving on Monday.  
  
He knew he had to tell him, but he wished he didn't have to. He wished he could just disappear.  
  
"We should go." He then said without a single emotion, hiding everything down inside of him, pulling himself away from both Jonathan and the warmth that always filled him when he was around his soulmate.  
  
He had to get away before he did something that he would later regret.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I actually have no idea how to surf and just worked my way with the tips from internet, so if I am wrong about something, I apologize!


	15. Separation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two abused boys share a bond they didn't ask for. Becoming close and questioning everything.
> 
> ——
> 
> Or: Since Billy isn't getting the redemption in the show, I am giving him one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys!   
> Thank you for continuing to read.   
> Buckle up for the ride!

_separation_ ;  
  
the act or process of separating.  
  
——  
  
Billy was planning on telling them all Sunday but he just couldn't bring himself to do it, each time he tried, the words just didn't come out of his mouth. He figured that he just felt too overpowered by all of them at once.  
  
He needed to do it separately.  
  
And so he just continued to ignore the situation until the end of the trip and suddenly it was Sunday afternoon and they were driving back home. And the blonde still hadn't told them. And he was leaving tomorrow evening.  
  
The boy knew he was just digging himself bigger hole by leaving it to the last minute but he figured it would be for the best. _Just tell them and leave. That would work.  
_  
He then decided to do exactly that. Just telling them on Monday, saying a quick goodbye and leaving. The boy hated goodbyes and hugs and crying and he didn't want to experience any of that.   
  
That was why he kept on being quiet during the whole ride with Jonathan eventually asking him if everything is alright, the blonde telling him that he was just tired.   
  
The brunette offered to switch with him after hearing that and Billy actually accepted it. He wanted to avoid talking to anyone at the moment and so he agreed and switched places with Jonathan with the intend to get a nap in the passenger's seat just as he did in the end, sleeping all the way to Hawkins.  
  
Jonathan woke him up just outside the Hawkins and the blonde immediately noticed that all three of them were awake, just minding their own business, with Jonathan driving and the two kids chatting quietly in the back, clearly wanting him to get the sleep he didn't know he needed.  
  
"I can't wait to tell mom about everything!" The youngest Byers said excitedly, his older brother nodding along. It was as if they were excited to be back. Billy didn't understand that, he would rather stay just there, where he was.  
  
The blonde stayed quiet for the ride to his soulmate's house and he really thought about telling them just right now, right here but the words wouldn't come out of his mouth. They still had smiles placed on their faces just as they did for the whole weekend and he didn't want to ruin them.  
  
And so he just stayed quiet, saying goodbye to the two boys when they reached their house, acting as if this was just another ordinary day for all of them. Even though he knew it would soon change.  
  
——  
  
Billy tried to flee to his room as soon as they got home but Susan's excited face and questions stopped him and so he decided to stick around for a little bit as his step-sister told her all about the trip and presented her with the souvenirs they had bought for her.  
  
They both looked so happy wrapped in their conversation and so the blonde just sneaked off unnoticed, as he walked to his room, he noticed his father exiting his office and he stopped for a few seconds just to watch his father look over the two females, clearly noticing that he returned the small redhead safe with a smile on her face. 

And so he just nodded towards his son before disappearing to the bathroom. Billy quickly made his way to his room, closing the door behind him.  
  
The boy sat on his bed, looking all around his room as he thought about everything that has happened during his time in Hawkins. His life made a complete turn when he met his soulmate.  
  
And he didn't want to leave. He just didn't.  
  
Tears almost crept up to his eyes but he quickly managed to pull himself together, trying to lock his feelings deep inside of him. He couldn't cry. Especially now, when he was supposed to join the U.S forces.   
  
_Man up. Stop being a little bitch._ That was all he was thinking about as he paced around his room, packing the things he would take with him into his backpack.   
  
He was aware that he wouldn't need much, he will get all needs at the place where he would be. That was why the packing was so much harder.  
  
The blonde wasn't sentimental about things but there were things that he just liked to have around him. His cologne, his radio, his tapes, his favourite shirts, his rings, his posters from Cali. And he knew that it would be pointless to take those things with him.  
  
And so he looked over the things he had placed on the bed, looking over every single thing.  
  
Shirts, shorts, trousers, jacket, wallet, toothbrush, shampoo, soap, towel, shoes. _What else?_  
  
He didn't really need that much, he knew he could just buy the things he needed or perhaps borrow them from someone. But still, he wanted to be prepared because he had a feeling his father would be checking his bag.  
  
The boy then put all of the things into his backpack, placing them carefully inside. His eyes then fell onto the application form laying on his dresser and he took it into his hand, looking all over it before he placed it into the bag as well.  
  
——  
  
That night was the shortest Billy has ever experienced. He fell asleep and it was morning as if it was just minutes. When he wanted the night to be forever, it was the quickest sleep he ever had.  
  
 _No turning back now._  
  
The boy got up from his bed, dressing himself in his favourite pair of jeans, shirt and his leather jacket. Putting on his boots and favourite sunglasses. He had planned to wear this outfit all day so he could take it with him without having to pack it.  
  
He then exited his room with nothing but his keys in his hands.  
  
It took only a few minutes for Max to exit her room all ready for school and soon she was sliding into a chair beside him, grabbing the toast clearly prepared by Susan before she went to work.  
  
For a moment it seemed that the redhead girl was going to make conversation with him but after Billy put his sunglasses on while still at the house, it was clear that he didn't want to deal with anything that day.  
  
The ride to the school was kind of awkward since the siblings's realtionship got so much better in those past months but right now, it was as if it was all forgotten because Billy just didn't want to ruin the last day he had with her sister for some time. Even though he wasn't realizing he was ruining it by doing nothing.  
  
He just decided to stay quiet for now, wanting to tell her the news during their ride back home. He figured it would be easier.  
  
And so he just made his way to the school, putting his sunglasses on as he walked inside the school building, looking all around him to see the familiar faces that he was used to seeing in the school. He didn't need to talk to any of them, he just saw them around and knew the feeling of familiarity.   
  
He completely ignored Steve and Nancy when he saw them walking towards Jonathan. He didn't want to talk to any of them, not just yet. He chose to ignore them for now just as he did with his sister.  
  
The boy didn't even plan to tell anyone else. He figured he should probably tell the principal but he would leave Neil to deal with that. It was his idea after all, anyway.  
  
He would tell his sister, his soulmate and probably the rest of Byers family. That was it. He really didn't need to tell anyone else. Yes, he was on quite good terms with Nancy and Steve along with the red's friends, but he didn't really feel the need to tell them about his life changes.  
  
And so he just went through his normal day, not paying attention in class, ignoring anyone who tried to talk to him, carving his name to the desk he was sitting at. He was just hanging around, waiting for school to end for the day.  
  
——  
  
The boy was waiting by his car once his classes were finished, smoking his cigarette as he leaned against his beloved car. He was watching the teenagers and kids mingle as they poured out of the school, hurrying back home.   
  
His eyes were wondering all around the parking lot, looking for that one specific redhead. He didn't have many hours left until he had to leave and he needed to tell her. He didn't want her to find out from Neil or Susan.  
  
The blonde was just finishing his cigarette when he spotted the girl who was approaching him as she rode on her skateboard.  
  
"Hey." She said once she got to the car, bending down as she took her skateboard into her hands before looking back up at the older boy.  
  
"Get in." He just said as he threw his cigarette away, getting into the car with the redhead following his actions.  
  
He really didn't know how to say it. _Shit._  
  
The boy just started the car, trying to form the words in his brain as he drove. He didn't realize that he was starting to develop a frown on his face and he definitely didn't notice the stare his sister was giving him.   
  
"What?"  
  
"What?" He quickly replied back, looking over at her with a frown.  
  
"Your face looks weird."  
  
"Your face looks weird." The boy was slowly realising that he was acting like a child and he needed to man up and just tell the younger girl.  
  
"Listen, kid." He started, shaking his head as he now just changed to sounding like a parent. "I am going to be away for a while."  
  
"What do you mean?" The girl asked as she eyed the boy sitting next to her.  
  
"I am not going to be around anymore."   
  
"What does that mean?" She asked once again, raising her eyebrows up at him. "Billy?"   
  
The mentioned boy squeezed the wheel tightly as he clenched his teeth, sneaking a glance at the girl beside him before looking back at the road, noticing that they were turning to their street.  
  
"I am joining the army, Max." He let out in one breath, trying not to stumble over his words.  
  
"What?" The girl asked shakily as if she didn't properly understand what it meant. "What the hell? Why?" She then continued, anger and sadness mixed in her voice.  
  
The boy looked down, gripping the wheel as he tried to compose himself and remain calm. "It doesn't matter, Max. It's happening."  
  
"No! No, you just don't get to say that. I want an explanation!" The girl started shouting at him and the boy almost flinched.  
  
 _Such for calming conversation._  
  
"Max, just leave it."   
  
"No, it doesn't make sense! So you just decided all of sudden that you want to join the army? And leave school? And me? And Jonathan?" Her voice was raising by each word and Billy could feel her stare boring into him.  
  
"I didn't just decide, for fuck's sake!" He growled out, making one last turn that was heading towards the house their lived in.  
  
"I don't understand." The girl whispered as she turned away from him and the blonde could swear he saw a flash of tears in her eyes but he didn't look at her, he didn't want to screw up even more than he already did.  
  
Once he parked the car in front of the house, the girl got out immediately, grabbing her backpack and the skateboard he gave her, with him following her quickly.  
  
"Max."  
  
The redhead just ignored him, trying to get inside the house as soon as possible.  
  
"Maxine." The boy tried again, grabbing her arm as he wanted to make her look at him, using the name she hated on purpose.  
  
"Don't call me that!" The girl called out as she threw her skateboard at him in frustration, the boy managing to dodge it in the last second, watching it collide with the back window of his car.  
  
 _Fucking great._  
  
The redhead seemed a little shocked at what she has done but she used the moment of surprise and fled to the inside of the house.  
  
"For fuck's sake." The boy mumbled as he followed after her, choosing to ignore his broken back window just for now.  
  
"Billy? Is everything okay?" He could hear his step-mother's voice as soon as he entered the house.  
  
"Not now, Susan." He bit out as he followed his step-sister to her room where she shut herself.  
  
The boy tried to open the door but he found out it's locked, trying it one more time before pounding onto the door. "Open the door or I will break them down." He then said calmly while still leaning against the door.  
  
He gave her a few seconds before hearing the click, meaning the girl has opened the door.  
  
The blonde quickly entered the room, his eyes falling onto the girl that was sitting on the bed now with her eyes looking glassy and her cheeks all red.   
  
Billy didn't quite know what to do, he has seen her be upset before, even cry, but that didn't mean he knew what to do.  
  
"Listen, Max." He started as he slowly walked towards her before kneeling down onto the floor in front of her. "I have to go, there is no way around it now. I signed the papers." He continued, trying to speak as calmly as he could.  
  
"Doesn't mean I want to go. Fuck, of course I want to stay here with you two." He let out, knowing very well that his sister knew who he met.  
  
He kind of surprised himself with that statement. He didn't want to stay in Hawkins and he didn't even really like the people here. But he did want to stay with his step-sister and his soulmate, and his family. It was all messing with him.  
  
Maybe he did need a time away from all of this.  
  
"Did Neil make you sign it?" The girl asked quietly, finally looking over at him.  
  
The boy didn't answer her question, he just looked away and that was clearly enough of an answer for the girl since she got up from her bed, throwing around the stuff that was on her bed, muttering some words under her breath that Billy didn't quite catch.  
  
She threw one of her pillows onto her desk, making the pencils and school supplies fly all over the place.  
  
"Max?" The blonde could hear his step-mother's voice and soon a knock on the door followed.   
  
Before any of the siblings could reply, the door opened, revealing the woman's soft smile with a worried expression placed on her face. "Is everything okay?"  
  
The redhead looked over at the boy, as if she didn't know if she is supposed to tell her or not.  
  
"Actually, Susan, can you come in here for a bit?"  
  
The woman seemed a little surprised by his request but she slipped inside the room, closing the door behind her as she went to sit down onto the bed next to her daughter who has sat down again as well.  
  
Billy took a deep breath, looking down at his hands as he played with a ring on his finger, feeling a little nervous all of sudden.  
  
"I am not sure if you are aware of this." He started, giving Susan a chance to say something before he continued. "I am leaving for the army tonight." He then just simply said, looking up to meet the woman's gaze.  
  
She seemed surprised but not that much. She looked over the both siblings before locking her gaze with the boy's. "I had my suspicions that something was going on..but I didn't know it was this." She let out quietly.  
  
"Maybe you don't have to go? Mom? Can't you do something?" The redhead asked her mother, turning towards her as she reached for her hand.  
  
"I don't know, Max." She replied, clearly not quite knowing what to say.   
  
"I told you, Max. I already signed the papers."   
  
"So what? Just say you changed your mind!" The girl said frustratedly, starting to frown again.  
  
"Max." Susan said softly, holding onto her daughter's hand. "This is not our decision to make."  
  
"It's not Billy's either! Neil made him do it!"  
  
"Okay, okay, enough." The boy loudly said, raising his arms up before running his hand through his hair. "It's done, Max. If I don't go now, I will have to go some other time. It doesn't matter."  
  
The girl then stayed quiet after hearing those words, looking down at her feet as she held onto her mother's hand who was still watching Billy carefully.  
  
"Listen..when I am away, I am going to need you to tell me everything, understood? If something happens, you write to me immediately." He said, making sure his voice was loud and clear. "If Neil even raises his voice, I want to know."   
  
Susan looked away for a second before she locked her eyes with her step-son again and nodded.  
  
Billy had a feeling that Neil wouldn't hurt any of the females but he still wanted to know if something happened.  
  
"I will send you two some money, okay?"  
  
"Billy, you don't have to do that." Susan quickly said, shaking her head slightly.   
  
"I want you to have some if there is an emergency." He said, not quite trusting his father and his anger issues. He still didn't like the fact that he was leaving them alone with him but he didn't have much of a choice.  
  
That was why he would be sending Susan money, for her and Max, if they needed to get out of the house or the town.  
  
He looked away from the two redheads sitting on the bed as he stretched his arms, he really needed a cigarette. "I need a haircut." The boy then said, looking directly at Susan. He knew that they would most likely shave his head but he didn't want to give them the pleasure of shaving all of his hair off. He liked his hair.   
  
The two of them found themselves in the bathroom with Susan making the boy's hair shorter and the boy watching her in the mirror, smoking a cigarette. He was quite surprised when Susan allowed him to smoke anywhere else than in his room but he figured it was because he was leaving in a few hours.  
  
"I meant it, though. What I said before. I need to know if something happens." The boy said, breaking the silence between them as he met her eyes in the mirror.  
  
"I know." The woman replied and it was enough for Billy. He sat in silence as Susan finished his haircut, smoking his cigarette.   
  
Once the woman was done and left Billy alone in the bathroom, the boy examined his haircut. He was used to his hair tickling his neck and it was weird to see himself with short hair after such a long time. He looked a bit older. _Oh, well._  
  
The blonde exited the bathroom and made his way to his room, grabbing the backpack he prepared earlier. He looked over the things once again before throwing it onto his back, looking over his room before leaving the room.  
  
Billy peaked inside his sister's room and he noticed her looking through her closet, clearly trying to find something. "I am leaving."  
  
The girl turned around at the sound of his voice. "Wait." She said as she continued to look for something until she finally came to his view with a comic book in his hand.  
  
"Here." She said, showing him the comic book. He of course knew what it was. It was his favourite one, he used to read it all the time when she first came around.  
  
He examined the comic book for a while before giving her a small nod, motioning for her to place it into the backpack. Once the girl came to his view again, the boy looked down at his hand before taking off the one ring he had left on his pinky finger.  
  
"Here." He replied back, taking one of her hands as he put the ring on her thumb. It fit perfectly. "Take care of that for me." It was a ring that he got back in California, he liked it a lot.  
  
The boy watched the girl examine the ring on her finger before she suddenly reached forward and wrapped her arms around him in a hug.   
  
He allowed it, for the sake of the situation, he stayed quiet and just hugged her back for a few seconds.  
  
The two of them walked through the house, aiming for the front door since the girl decided to follow him. The boy stopped in the kitchen when he saw Susan with two wrapped sandwiches in her hands.  
  
"For the ride." She said queitly before walking around him and placing the sandwiches into the backpack as well.  
  
"Thanks." He let out, examining Susan to see if she was about to hug him as well or not. He really didn't want her to.  
  
But she only placed her hand onto his shoulder, giving him a small squeeze and a slight smile. It was enough for him, he knew what it meant.  
  
"Give this to Neil." He said, taking out a folded paper from his pocket as he gave it to the woman. It was a note that he had written to his father since he didn't get a chance to see him. Not that he wanted to.  
  
The woman took it with a nod and Billy was glad that she didn't open it up and read it. It wasn't the most pleasant.  
  
 _Touch them and I will make sure everyone knows your son likes dick._  
  
——  
  
Once the boy exited the house, he made sure not to look back, he didn't want to see them in case they were looking out for him.   
  
He still didn't feel very good about leaving them but he hoped that the little note he had left for his father would make him think twice about his actions. Neil Hargrove really valued his reputation, especially in the army department.  
  
Nobody would care that he had girlfriends, nobody would care that he also likes girls. All he had to do was admit that he liked guys and no one would focus on anything else.   
  
He trusted them that they would let him know if something happened, but that didn't mean he wouldn't make sure the Byers were keeping an eye on them as well.  
  
And that was where he was going right now.   
  
With backpack over his shoulder, his hair lighter and shorter, his boots hitting the road as he walked.  
  
As he walked he started noticing more things than he ever did. The guy watering his garden, the teenager washing his car, the woman that he could see cooking behind her window, the two little girls playing outside their house. All these people just living their people and not caring about what is going to happen to them.  
  
The boy kind of envied them. He hated the simple life but right now he wouldn't mind it so much.  
  
It took him about twenty minutes to get to the Byers house while normally it would take him a few minutes by the car. He also smoked way more cigarettes that he normally would.  
  
He only had a few left. He needed to save them for his walk to catch the bus.  
  
Adding that to the list that he didn't want to do. Tell Jonathan. Watch his reaction. Leave Jonathan. Catch the bus. Join the army. Be far away from his soulmate.  
  
His list was just growing. _Fucking great._  
  
The blue eyes were set on the familiar house and he just didn't want to go. He really didn't want to.   
  
He thought about just turning away and waiting for the bus but he knew that it wouldn't be fair to Jonathan or his family who surprisingly seemed to like him.  
  
The boy let out a sigh as he walked up to the house, knocking on the door as he waited for someone to open, dreading the situation that was about to happen.  
  
And of course it had to be the brown eyed teenager that swung the door open, placing a smile onto his face.  
  
Billy was just about to greet his soulmate when he watched Jonathan's face change a little before the other boy started laughing.  
  
"What happened to your hair?"  
  
"I fell on bunch of scissors."  
  
"It looks alright."   
  
"Yeah, whatever, it's just hair, man." The blonde shrugged as he walked into the house, ignoring the quite mumbling he could hear from the other boy. 'Yeah, sure, come in.'  
  
"Where is everyone?" He then said as he looked around, noticing that no one was around.  
  
"Mom took Will to see Hopper and Eleven. They should be back soon, we are having dinner. Are you staying for dinner?" The boy replied normally, closing the door as he looked over at the other boy.  
  
"Oh, that's just fucking great." The blonde sighed under his breath. Not only did he have to face Jonathan alone, he then had to face the rest of the Byers with company that he didn't plan to see tonight.  
  
"No, thanks. I won't be around for dinner." The blonde replied, throwing his backpack onto the couch as he ran his hand through his hair. He still hadn't gotten used to his hair being shorter.  
  
"Okay, mate.." He started before quickly shutting up as he grimaced. _Okay, mate? What the fuck was that?_  
  
"No, okay, listen.." He tried again, watching Jonathan pace around as he seemed to be cleaning the place.  
  
 _Fucking cleaning._  
  
"Listen.." He spoke again, widing his eyes as he noticed the other boy wasn't even looking at him as he cleaned the table, walking right past Billy a few seconds later just as the blonde tried to get something out of himself.  
  
"Would you just fucking stop for a second?" He then growled out, frustration filling him as he watched the other boy finally stop and look at him.  
  
He noticed that he was breathing heavily and the other boy clearly noticed as well since he was now looking at him with concern. "What's up?"  
  
Billy hated concern, he didn't want Jonathan to be concerned about him, he didn't want him to care, he didn't need that right now. He didn't need this right now.  
  
"I am leaving." He then got out of himself without even meaning to.  
  
 _Way to go, Billy. Fuck._  
  
"Leaving? What do you mean?" The photographer just looked confused, clearly not understanding the whole situation just from those words.  
  
The blonde groaned out in frustration as he banged his head against the nearest wall next to him, his forehead leaning against the wall short after that. He ignored the other boy's 'What the hell?', closing his eyes as he put his hands next to his head.  
  
"I am joining the army."   
  
You could hear a needle drop in the silence that began after his words. He really wanted Jonathan to yell at him, to punch him or something. He just really didn't want him to be so fucking quiet.  
  
And he didn't even see his face because he didn't want to. He didn't want to find out.  
  
"What?" Jonathan's voice sounded so small, Billy hated it.  
  
"You heard me."  
  
The brunette stayed quiet once again but the blonde could hear him getting closer and once he felt the warm hand on his shoulder, he banged his head into the wall once again.  
  
"Stop that!" The photographer called out before pulling the blonde away from the wall who let himself be pulled away before he sank down onto the floor, resting his head against the wall.  
  
"What are you talking about?" The brunette asked as he sat down next to the other boy, searching for something in his face.  
  
"I have to leave soon. I already signed the papers." He just simply let out, not wanting to deal with the situation anymore, he just wanted to get it over it.  
  
"But why?" The other boy let out quietly but Billy could feel from his voice that he knew exactly why. "Is it because of your dad?"   
  
"Of course it is."  
  
"He can fuck off! Come on, we can do something!" The boy yelped out, holding onto the blonde's arm as if he tried to shake him, trying to shake some sense into him.  
  
"No."  
  
"Billy! You can't leave." Jonathan almost whispered the last part and Billy flinched at the sound of voice.  
  
"But I am." He had replied, trying his best to avoid the look on Jonathan's face. It looked like disappointment. And he didn't want to see that.  
  
The blonde tried to get out of the brunette's grip but the other boy held onto his arm which led to Billy using force to pull away just as Jonathan smacked his shoulder for trying to pull away. Billy pushed the other boy back without even realising and before he did realize, they were pushing each other around with more force each time.  
  
As if that would get rid of their frustration.  
  
"Stop." The blonde then said as he caught the other boy's wrists who tried to wiggle out of his grip, frustration written all over his face mixed with sadness.  
  
"You can not just leave." The photographer let out weakly, pulling his hands back to himself.  
  
"I have no other choice. It's a done deal already, pretty boy."  
  
"It's not fair." Jonathan continued quietly, looking away from the blonde.  
  
"Life is not fair, Jonathan." The boy matched the tone of the other boy's voice, reaching his hand forward the brunette.  
  
But the photographer's attitude changed from sadness to anger and soon he was breathing heavily, getting up from the floor, muttering words under his breath that Billy didn't quite hear.  
  
"Jonathan, calm down." The blonde said, reaching out for the boy once again.  
  
"No, don't. Don't tell me to calm down. This is bullshit!"  
  
Billy preferred anger over everything and he guessed that angry Jonathan was better than sad Jonathan but that didn't mean he knew how to properly deal with it.  
  
"Stop it." The blonde let out as he watched the other boy pace around. "Stop it." He replied, more quietly this time as he pulled the photographer back down onto the floor next to him.   
  
The boy started to push himself away from Billy who didn't let him, just letting him to beat the anger out by punching his chest as he tried to get away from him.  
  
It didn't hurt the blonde, in fact he didn't even really notice it.  
  
After a minute the photographer calmed down, his hands holding the blonde's shirt as he breathed heavily with his forehead against Billy's shoulder.  
  
"It's alright." The blonde assured his soulmate as he brought his hand up to stroke the brunette's hair, trying to calm him down.  
  
"I am sorry." Jonathan let out after a while, sounding so small that the blonde could actually feel his own throat closing on him.  
  
——  
  
The two boys stayed on the floor for quite some time, the blonde just trying to feel as close to his soulmate as he could, enjoying the warmth that always filled him.  
  
Jonathan pulled away from the other boy after a while and now they were just sitting there, quietly, next to each other.  
  
"I want you to have this." The blonde decided to break the silence as he brought his hand to his neck, taking off his necklace. He first just admired it in his hand before he turned to his soulmate, taking one of his hands and placing his precious necklace into Jonathan's hand.  
  
"I want you to take care of this for me. I don't want to lose it."  
  
The brunette nodded in understandment and Billy took the necklace his mother gave him into his hands again, bringing it to his soulmate's neck before putting the necklace on Jonathan. Placing his hand onto it for a second before pulling away.  
  
"I will take good care of it." The brunette reassured him as he brought his own hand to the necklace, seeing how it felt on his skin.  
  
"I got one more thing to ask you."  
  
"What?" The photographer asked as he kept his eyes on the boy sitting next to him.  
  
"Can you keep an eye for me on Susan and Max?"  
  
"Of course, Billy." He assured him, giving his shoulder a squeeze as he nodded along. "Of course."  
  
"Can you tell the others to watch them as well?" The blonde asked, hoping his soulmate would understand that he meant the other Byers with Hopper and perhaps Jonathan's friends that would be around Max.  
  
"Why don't you ask them yourself? They shouldn't be long anymore."  
  
The boy scratched the back of his neck as he looked at the boy next to him. "Yeah..I am not going to stick around for that long."  
  
"What do you mean?" The brunette questioned him as he gave him a puzzled look with a deep frown forming his face.  
  
"I don't want to see them."  
  
"Why the hell not? They are like a family to you!"  
  
"Exactly!" The blonde said harshly, looking away from his soulmate. "I am done. Fuck those fucking goodbyes. I hate this."  
  
The brunette looked taken back a little bit, his frown disappearing as he understood his soulmate's frustration with the situation he has been put in.  
  
"I understand." He then said as he reached over to touch the blonde's hand again.  
  
"You are not helping. Like at all."  
  
"Oh, I am sorry that I am trying to enjoy what might be the last moment with my soulmate."   
  
The brunette bat out sarcastically before realizing what he had said, opening his mouth to say something before a hand clasped over his mouth.  
  
"Just shut up. Shut up, Jonathan." The blonde breathed out, not wanting to think about what was just said.  
  
"I am sorry.." The other boy replied quietly once Billy removed his hand.  
  
Billy muttered something under his breath that sounded like 'What did I just fucking say?' but the brunette decided to ignore it as he stood up, dragging the blonde along with him.  
  
——  
  
The blonde let himself be pulled up, following the smaller male who walked into his bedroom with Billy close behind him.  
  
"Do you have everything you might need?" Jonathan asked once he entered his bedroom, looking around his room as if he was looking for something.  
  
"I don't know."   
  
"What do you need?"  
  
"I don't care, Jonathan." The boy breathed out, leaning against the desk as he rubbed his forehead. "I don't fucking care."  
  
"Well, I do." The brunette said strongly, pulling Billy's hands away from his face so he would be looking at him. "You have to take care of yourself. You have to be careful, do you understand? I need you to come back."  
  
The brunette's words were repeating themselves inside the blonde's mind as he just stared at him, not being able to say anything for a moment there and so he just nodded.  
  
 _I need you to come back._  
  
"Relax, pretty boy. I am going to fine. When am I not?" He pulled himself back together, putting on his casual face as he always did, pushing away the emotions he didn't want to feel.  
  
"You know..you usually call me pretty boy when you want to get away with something or get out of something. So what is it this time?"  
  
The blonde couldn't help but form a smirk on his face. "Someone is catching up." He didn't even try to deny it. He was aware that Jonathan usually saw through his bullshit. He kind of liked it. Sometimes. Sometimes it annoyed it he wanted to bang his head against the wall.   
  
Again.  
  
"Yes, I am. So don't try to be a smartass."  
  
"I do have a great ass."  
  
"Oh my god." The brunette muttered out as he rolled his eyes at Billy trying to change the subject. It looked like their usual atmosphere was back, except that there was a weight hanging around in the air.  
  
Which was the fact that Billy had to leave in an hour.  
  
The blonde looked around his soulmate's room, walking around as he picked up random things before putting them back. That was until he found the pictures Jonathan recently developed. It was pictures from their little trip.  
  
And it was two pictures in particular that captured his attention.  
  
One was of all of them standing next to some dumb sign that Will liked, wanting to take a picture of everyone next to it. They ended up asking a random stranger that was passing them for the picture and there they were, Max, Billy, Will and Jonathan all standing there.  
  
Max and Will had those dumb wide smiles placed on their faces with Jonathan laughing at them next to Billy who was just looking at them, looking both confused and happy at the same time.  
  
It kind of described all of their times together. It explained how Billy felt around all of them. Confused in a sort of way but happy.  
  
And then there was the second picture.  
  
It wasn't of all of them. It was just Jonathan and Billy. The blonde actually had no idea who took this or where this was or what they were talking about. It was just both of the soulmates, talking about something and to someone who didn't know them, it would be just a very ordinary picture.  
  
But Billy could tell that they were arguing about something, playfull arguing that involved rolling eyes, sticking out tongues or poking each other.  
  
He could also see the twinkle in his soulmate's eyes, meaning they had to talk about something that Jonathan was passioned about.  
  
It was probably Billy teasing the other boy about something but the brunette wasn't having it.  
  
And they were arguing about it with small smiles placed on their faces.  
  
The blonde held both of the pictures in his hands as he felt his soulmate's presence too close to him, looking over his shoulder he could see Jonathan standing right next to him, looking at the pictures.  
  
"You want to take them?"  
  
"Can I?" Billy hated sounding so small and he honestly didn't even mean to, it was just the way his voice came out. The other boy just nodded in agreement.  
  
He did all he could to try and joke about the situation or be an asshole about the situation. But in the end, he didn't want to do it. He didn't want to leave.  
  
"I can't believe you are leaving." Jonathan let out, sounding just as small as Billy did a second ago. It was exactly what the blonde was thinking. He couldn't believe it either.  
  
He couldn't believe that he was actually giving up his current life willingly.  
  
"I am gonna be alright, pretty boy." The blonde replied, giving his soulmate one of his small smiles. He didn't even try to fake it this time. Jonathan could see right through him anyway.  
  
He had to leave in a few minutes in order to catch the bus. He had to leave his true new found family behind.  
  
The boy looked at the photographer next to him who just looked so worried about him it was weirdly adorable.  
  
Maybe he just liked calling him pretty boy.


End file.
